


Date in the Name of the Law

by Applesaday



Series: A Million Ways to Say It [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Cop AU, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-18
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-03-02 00:48:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 32,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2793710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applesaday/pseuds/Applesaday
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Regina's sure that someone must be laughing at her. Not only was she having to do a cheesy undercover job, but she also had to do it with the rookie? Cop AU ergo: no magic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Assignment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the final SQ Week drabble that will be turning into a full fic!
> 
>  
> 
> Please enjoy this chapter if you haven't read it before!

Regina gripped the back of the chair in front of her tighter, willing her anger to recede.

She had come in to her boss' office, not even bothering to sit down on the chair in front of his desk, ready to receive her new assignment. James was still smirking at her, as if this was one big game to him.

"I refuse."

James' fingers were intertwined in front of him, and he looked positively evil sitting in his chair, something Regina was sure that he did on purpose in order to look more intimidating. "Ah, but you can't refuse. This wasn't a request you can turn down, it's an order. Goes beyond my paygrade."

"But with the Rookie?" Regina practically spat the last word out.

He smirked wider, unlacing his fingers. "Everyone needs to start somewhere."

Regina practically growled "At the expense of my patience?"

* * *

"Swan!"

"Bear claws!" Emma jumped up from her desk where she totally hadn't been snoozing. Nah she had just been meditating... yes of course.

Her boss, the good-natured Graham, shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not a snack call Swan. Got a new assignment for you."

She looked over to her partner in crime and friend, Ruby, grinning, and then both turned to look at Graham expectantly.

His smile faltered here. "Sorry ladies,  _Detective_  Emma's got another partner for this one."

"For real?" Emma's excitement barreled through the fact that she should've been sad that she wasn't working with Ruby. She didn't even register the fact that she had to be working with someone else on this one.

Her friend quickly caught on to that, and with a playful shove, said "Already forgetting about us little people in your quest for fame and glory?"

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Of course not! You know I'll always think of you guys as my team."

Emma Swan had been in the police force for 5 years, and had already accumulated quite a bit of a reputation with her effective methods at solving crimes. Rumors started flying around that the higher ups had been considering on promoting her. Seemed like for once the rumors were true.

"So who is Emma's new  _lucky_  partner on this one?" Ruby was feigning jealousy, her lips pursed and arms crossed, but Emma could see that Ruby's eyes were sparkling with laughter.

Graham's initial reluctance to answer had both women on edge.

"Well?" Emma wasn't so ecstatic now. Who did she get saddled with? She hoped it wasn't Her Royal Majesty, Bitch Frost herself.

"Mills"

Well shit.

* * *

_It was Emma Swan's first day on the force, and she was running late. She hoped her boss wouldn't be one of those stereotypical hardasses who were anal about being on time._

_She rounded a corner, the coffee she was carrying dangerously close to spilling, and she smiled as she saw the Boston PD building come into view. She glanced up as the building loomed closer, and didn't even see as she crashed smack into someone._

_Her coffee, previously in her cup, was now staining the perfect suit of the woman she had ran into. Said woman wearing the suit was glaring daggers at her._

_Emma didn't have time for profuse apologies, so she just smiled sheepishly, grabbed some napkins that she had taken from the coffee shop, and stuffed them into the hand of still mute woman, yelling back her apologies as she ran into the building, leaving the soaked, and probably scalding, woman standing there like an idiot with her briefcase and some crumpled napkins._

_The blonde had actually managed to snag a pretty laid-back chief, Graham as he insisted he call her, and her new partner Ruby was pretty friendly. They explained the inner workings of the department, including some of the less savoury characters, most of them pertaining to the detectives' floor._

_Sidney Glass was a detective and avid photographer, and also the source of gossip for the entire PD. He was a friend of Ruby's, the two gossiping like old ladies constantly. But he could also be one hell of an extortionist, making sure to know what words would get what he wanted._

_"Never give him material to use as leverage against you." Ruby had warned her._

_But the very worst one of all was Regina Mills. Ruby said that although James Nolan officially ran the detective department, it was well known that Regina was the puppet-master the entire operation._

_"God help you if you ever on Regina's bad side. Last person to do that was never heard from again."_

_Emma was sure Ruby was exaggerating, but she hoped she would never have to meet, or have to deal with her. She really didn't sound pleasant._

_She ended up eating her words before the end of the day. Ruby had come back from lunch with Sidney and was already telling August, a fellow officer, about how some poor soul had spilled scalding hot coffee onto Regina Mills this morning, and had the balls to leave her just standing there outside with some napkins, not even offering to help._

_The blonde had paled, but kept her head down. People spilled coffee on other people all the time. What were the chances that that was **just** her luck to spill coffee on the most frigid member of the force?_

_Apparently it was really high._

_As she was leaving the building, she got on the elevator without looking up from her papers, and as she glanced up, she saw she was sharing an elevator with none other than Regina Mills._

_Well, Emma didn't know that at the time, but she recognized the face from this morning, and saw that the clothes were now different and coffee-free. The blonde decided that maybe she should take the first step, maybe apologizing now would make the other woman forgive her._

_She extended her hand towards the brunette, a charming smile on her face. "Hi, I'm really sorry for spilling coffee on you this morning, it's my first day and I was kinda in a rush, otherwise I would've totally helped you. I'm Emma Swan."_

_The brunette barely batted an eyelash after she finished her speech, her mouth set in a thin line. Clearly she was hard to please. As the elevator arrived to the first floor, she walked up to Emma, personal space be damned, and said, " **Detective**  Regina Mills." She pushed past Emma roughly, walking out of the elevator as the doors opened. "You'd do well to watch where you're going,  **Rookie**."_

_Emma could only stand there, now she was the one looking like an idiot, hand still raised to shake, mouth gaping. Just great._

* * *

Ever since then, the two have had their fair share of spats. They could barely stand to be in the same room together, making the Christmas parties super awkward. They never even acknowledged each other as anything but their derogatory nicknames. Regina called her Rookie, and Emma called her a variety of names, her favorite being Bitch Frost.

As Emma stood in James' office, the other woman could've probably melted the strongest metal with the glare she had on her face. Clearly she was just as enthusiastic about the arrangement as Emma was. But she could hardly complain, she couldn't exactly start already angering her superiors on the first day in her new position.

"Well, now that you two are all done with introductions," he was mocking them, they had been silent since Emma came in, Regina having already given Emma a dose of her signature lemon-sucking expression the minute she had come bounding through the door. "Your assignment. A very powerful drug kingpin will be hosting the party of the year. We need you both to go in for recon. We know that this man is well connected, and would only invite the seediest underworld characters to ever exist, all who are currently in the game. So what I want are names."

Regina spoke up, venom lacing her voice, "Then why do I need a partner? Or is the Rookie supposed to be part of those trashy druggies, she certainly looks the part."

Emma glared at the other woman, who didn't even deign to turn and face her glare. So they didn't share the same tastes in clothes, was that such a crime? She liked leather jackets and the Ice Queen liked pantsuits. Big deal.

James' smirk grew wider. "You need to get out more. No, it's Valentine's day tomorrow, and this guy, ever the romantic, is hosting a party and a partner is required."

Emma did a double take. Before she could stop herself, she blurted, "Hang on, we're going there as  _a couple_?"

"Yep."

Regina looked positively murderous. "Then why the hell do I need her? I can take Sidney-"

"He's busy with another case, and anyway, I got my orders. You two are going and that's final. So if I were you, I'd get to know each other, 'cause if you plan on surviving Gold's party, you don't just need to act the part. You need to live it." James winked at them. What an idiot. Ruby had said he had a twin brother, who was much kinder, also in the force. Just her luck that the evil brother was her new boss.

* * *

Emma's hand was poised on the door of the apartment, ready to knock again, when the door finally opened. To say Emma was gaping was an understatement. Clearly the older woman could probably look stunning wearing a paper bag, since the towel she had wrapped around herself -despite being just a rectangular piece of cloth -managed to show off her curves perfectly. Emma hid a smile and a blush as she saw that the woman had clearly just gotten out of the shower, her hair stuffed inside a towel wrapped around her head, and some strands that had escaped were dripping water onto her bare shoulders.

"You're here early, Rookie." Regina was clearly not pleased at being interrupted with her beauty bath. Emma noticed that Regina gave her a quick once-over, staring at the midnight blue dress she was wearing, but the brunette didn't make any comment regarding her opinion of the dress.

"My apologies, your Majesty," she feigned a curtsy, before continuing, "but I figured that, since you bolted yesterday before I could even say a word and we're supposed to be playing a couple, we should at least get to know each other somewhat, and not look like we're on the edge of jumping at each other's throats," Emma deadpanned. Seriously? She hoped this wasn't going to be her permanent partner if she had to be dealing with this kind of attitude every time.

"Very well. But don't touch anything." Regina opened the door wider to let the blonde in.

"Well, you're letting me breathe at least, I consider that a win. So, colour?"

Regina barely had time to react with a snarky retort to the jab the blonde made before the question threw her off. "What?"

Emma sighed, acting like she was a teacher dealing with a rather difficult child. "What's your favorite colour?"

Regina grimaced. "When did this turn into a sharing session?"

"Did you just not hear anything I said? We're supposed to be dating! What kind of an idiot would I be if I didn't know the answers to some basic questions about my girlfriend?"

Regina discreetly flinched at the term the blonde used. It was true that they were supposed to be dating, but Regina never stopped to think of themselves as girlfriends in this scenario.

When the brunette didn't reply, Emma continued, "Seriously? Didn't you find out those basic pieces of information from your past lovers?"

"No, I didn't."

Emma snorted. "Must be one hell of a love life you got there, your Majesty."

Regina narrowed her eyes at the moniker the other woman had adopted to call her, and felt her fury rising. It was just for one night. She just had to be civil for one night and that was it. "Purple."

Emma smiled at the confession. "That wasn't so bad was it? And red, thanks for asking."

The older woman was positive that if certain laws didn't prevent her from getting away with it, she'd strangle the blonde right then and there. Instead she rolled her eyes. "While you think up of more excellent and stimulating questions, I need to dress."

The brunette left Emma standing in the living room, the latter made herself at home the minute the other woman was out of sight, propping herself on the probably expensive leather couch, feet resting on the table that was probably in the same price range as the sofa.

Not even five minutes later was Regina back, now wearing a Boston PD shirt and shorts. Hell hath no fury like a woman who has her furniture touched, Emma thought wryly as she saw the scowl she was greeted with.

"Have you no class?" This immature woman was really testing her patience.

"Have you got any furniture that doesn't look like it should be in a museum? I mean seriously, do you even sleep in your own bed?"

"You are worse than a child."

"Better a child than a frigid bitch. When's your birthday?"

"Wh-" This was the second time the blonde had managed to short-circuit her thoughts with a disarming question. This was going to be one hell of an evening.

* * *

Clearly criminals could clean up well. This was practically a gala, and if they didn't know any better, this would've looked at first to be like any high-society ball.

They handed their invitations at the door, and once Regina finished putting her coat away, she was surprised to see Emma with her arm out, in an offer to take it. The brunette accepted it, and they walked into the party arm in arm. The party was being held in a fancy club with a low ceiling and a clean atmosphere, sparse tall tables and no chairs at all. Everyone was either drinking, mingling, or grinding. Quite a variety of options, Emma thought with a derisive snort.

Together, they made their way over to the cocktail bar, standing with drinks in hand and glancing around the room. They were all business and were actually helping each other to find recognizable criminals around the room.

"Sooooo." One man made their way to them, clearly drunk off his ass. Emma tried to hide any sign of recognition. Well shit, this could go south real fast. He got real close to Emma, and with a breath smelling of vodka, said, "I'm Neal, and you are?"

"Taken." Regina had jumped in, putting a protective arm around her waist. Emma's breath hitched. Man, she never knew Regina could get so territorial and possessive with her partner.  _Fake_  partner, Emma reminded herself. She was just playing the part.

Neal had taken the hint, pretty astute for a drunk guy, and stumbled away from them.

Emma willed herself to calm down. She smirked as the hand stayed on her waist. They might be fake dating, but they still teased each other mercilessly. "Thanks for the save, babe."

Regina stiffened, removing her hand like she was touching a burning surface. She cleared her throat, and changed the subject. "I don't believe I know him."

"Cassidy. Guy is a criminal, a good one, he uses his charms to get other people to do the work for him and take the fall if something goes wrong." Emma tried to shrug the matter off with what she had read up on the guy. A couple of years ago she was set on his case but the trail went cold quickly. At least that was the official story.

Emma could sense the jealousy seep into the reply, "If you're so enamored and impressed, maybe you should've flirted with him."

The blonde smirked. She whirled to face the brunette by her side, and said, "Like you said, I'm taken. Plus, what kind of girlfriend would I be if I just left you all by your lonesome with these bad guys?"

Regina didn't have a ready response for this, and she looked away at some cheering coming from the door. As she saw who had arrived, she paled. "Shit."

Emma hadn't been expecting that as her answer, but followed her partner's gaze to the door, seeing the very handsome man coming inside. "Old flame?"

"Not exactly," Regina grumbled. "More like an old assignment."

This wasn't good news. "Let me guess. You arrested him and he hates your guts, and he has your face memorized so he could pick you out of a crowd, therefore ruining this entire operation?"

Regina could only nod meekly.

Emma glanced back. The man, who Emma recognized as the modern day skewed Robin Hood, pilfering from the rich to keep for himself or fund illegal projects, was making his way over to the bar, straight to where she and Regina were standing.

Thankfully he was talking animatedly with his companion and hadn't noticed them yet, leading Emma to make a split-second decision. She turned back to her panicked partner, grabbed her face, and pulled her into a kiss.

Regina barely had time to react, but to the surprise of both women, she melted into the kiss, rather than jump away horrified. Emma wanted to close her eyes and enjoy this, but kept a watch as the bandit passed right beside them - so close Emma could've stuck her leg out and tripped the guy - and didn't recognize Regina.

As Regina let out a moan, it seemed the sound brought the brunette back to reality and now she jumped back, cheeks flushed and eyes wide.

Well this was going to be an even more awkward evening than either had imagined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Next up will be the end of the party plus the aftermath the next day.
> 
> This is pretty much a cop AU type of deal, just in case it wasn't clear.
> 
> Anyway! Let me know what you think!


	2. Partners

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And as promised, chapter 2!
> 
> We continue at the party with our dynamic duo deep undercover!
> 
> Enjoy!

Regina cleared her throat, turning to look at where Robin was currently entertaining a group of young women. He hadn't seen her, and the brunette let out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about it."

The older woman turned to look at her partner, brow furrowing. "For what?"

"The uh, the kiss..." Emma was now blushing, embarrassed at having to explain. "It was the first thing that came to my mind."

"Oh." It had been some good quick-thinking by the blonde, especially since she had been frozen on the spot, something which never happened to her. "It's fine, it did the job in our situation."

"Yeah..." Emma nodded, looking around. Then she froze, seeing something behind Regina, and quickly thought on her feet again. "We're going dancing."

"Wha-" Regina could barely react before the other woman grabbed her hand and dragged her to the dance floor, which currently held a mass of bodies grinding onto each other to some contemporary tune.

Somehow they managed to get deep into the group of dancers, and through the blaring music, Emma managed to say to Regina, "Your ex was walking towards us so we had to move."

"He is  _not_  my ex!" Regina was livid, glaring at Emma.

Said blonde was looking around her, trying to keep at bay the men that could blow this entire operation sky high. "Whatever you say, babe"

Regina rolled her eyes, willing her self-restraint to prevent her from choking her partner, and tried to at least move to the rhythm, people were starting to look at the two still women.

Next thing Emma knew, she felt someone grinding into her pelvis. She was about to tear someone a new one, as well as to spit out a few choice words about keeping it in their pants, until she saw who it was. Regina freaking Mills, frigid detective by day, and humourless brick wall by night, was grinding her ass into her. The brunette grabbed Emma's hands, that were still limp at her sides, and put the hands on her hips.

Holy shit. Emma was touching Regina's hips, swaying sensually. She was going to need a  _very_  cold bath after this. Regina suddenly leaned back a bit, her back resting against Emma's chest, and whispered, "People were starting to look. We were stiffer than mannequins."

"Right," was Emma's squeaky reply. Man she must look like a horny teenager who never got any action with her responses. Plus she practically had to be guided on what to do by Regina, since her body had decided to forget how to function right at that moment.

The brunette just chuckled. Clearly she must be having a riot seeing Emma flounder so pathetically.

* * *

After what felt like centuries dancing, Emma and Regina finally made their way out of the dance floor. They were both lacking air from the constricting space, and needing a good drink.

They settled once again in the bar, drinks in hand, looking around the scene.

"Well hello dears." Both women turned to see the infamous Gold strutting up to meet them, his shaggy hair and smirk making all of Emma's creeper alarms ring. "I don't believe I've had the chance to meet you two ladies."

Emma flashed a radiant smile, hoping to lay off suspicions. To be honest, she was internally panicking. "Oh are you the host of this party? My girlfriend and I were just saying how rad this party as, right babe?"

Regina made a mental note to herself to remind the blonde that the next time she called her 'babe' she would sorely regret it. But now appearances were appearances. "Oh yes, mind-blowing."

Thankfully Gold seemed pretty content with their responses, even puffing up a bit at the compliment. "Well thank you, but now I must go and attend to some private matters. If you'll excuse me."

As Gold left, both women let out a sigh of relief. Emma was the first to speak up. "Care to call it a night?"

Regina nodded. "I think we've done enough recon for the night."

The undercover detectives made their way to the door, relishing in the crisp winter air once they were outside. They were now bundled in their respective jackets, making their way to Emma's car. Thankfully, after years in the force, Emma was finally able to afford a good car, meaning that she could avoid the public transit, which always had a knack of making her late, however cliched that sounded. She tried to avoid it as much as she could, but with her old yellow bug that loved to break down one too many times, it was an inevitable consequence. And now the luxurious sports car was a more reliable upgrade, meaning she could avoid the transit.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Emma broke the silence as she revved the engine, smiling a bit at her companion.

But it seems that Regina's niceness storage had run out. Either that or she had been ready to explode with anger for the past 3 hours, but had kept up the impressive facade. "Not so bad? You nearly exposed us at least 3 times, not to mention you forgot to establish our undercover roles, where  _I_  was supposed to take charge of the conversation with Gold and set myself up as a potential new partner. It was a disaster, but what can I expect from the Rookie?"

"Seriously? I'm sorry  _your Majesty_ , how exactly did I expose you 3 times? Was it my kissing you? Did you prefer to be discovered? Because if memory serves me right, you were the one that froze up the minute you saw Robin Hood waltz in. If it hadn't been for me we wouldn't even have been able to talk to Gold." Emma didn't even want to tackle the rest of what the brunette said. She shouldn't have to deal with this shit. They got the recon and they weren't outed as cops, what more could she want? It's not as if they were being graded on effectiveness.

The rest of the trip was saddled with awkward silence, both women were seething in anger for the other. By the time they arrived at Regina's apartment, the tension inside the car needed an industrial powered saw to cut through it.

"Good night, your Majesty." Without even looking at the passenger seat, Emma coolly let the brunette know it was her stop and to get out of the car.

Regina, for her part, didn't even bother to respond, wordlessly getting out of the car. She still created a ruckus, managing to make the seatbelt snap away, clanging around the interior - Emma just gripped the steering wheel tighter, repeating a mantra of 'just a few more seconds' in order to steel herself from blowing up at the insufferable woman - finally slamming the door closed with such a force Emma was sure her windows should've cracked.

As she peeled away from the curb, she turned her radio high up and let out a whoop. She was free. No more bitchy partner. Just hand in her report and be done with Regina Mills.

Oh how wrong she was.

* * *

"I'm impressed." James Nolan was rifling through both of their reports, said authors of the reports were sitting on the visitor chairs, doing everything possible to avoid looking at each other but still managing to glance around the room as they waited for their boss to finish.

At his voice, both women turned to face him. "I'll be passing this to the higher ups, they'll be glad to see all the names and get right on a tail to bring them in."

Both the brunette and the blonde flashed practised smiles, ones that didn't reach to their eyes, but to any unsuspecting viewer, looked genuine.

"You're dismissed." With that they were done and out of the office without another word.

Emma made her way to her desk, wanting to finish setting everything up.

"I think congratulations are in order, since you survived your first mission with Mills."

Emma turned around to see Sidney Glass standing at the entrance of her cubicle, a friendly smile on his face. "Thanks. I'm just glad to be done with her you know? There's only so much bitchiness I can take in one day."

Sidney chuckled in response. Due to his friendship with Ruby, Emma had gotten acquainted with the gossiper a number of years ago. Of course Emma was still careful with what she revealed to the man, Ruby's warning from her first days was still fresh in her mind.

"Completely understandable. Any idea who your long term partner is going to be?"

Emma shook her head. "None. As long as it's not her Royal Frosty Ass or Harold, I think I'm good."

"Oh trust me, Harold's a better pick than Jones."

Emma hadn't heard of this Jones before, though granted, she had yet to meet most of the detective department. She should probably get around doing that this afternoon. "How so?"

"Guy is an ass, the womanizing macho type."

The blonde cringed. "Fair point. He can move up the list, but still not above her Majesty."

Sidney grinned. "You really hate her don't you?"

"Not my fault she's a frigid bitch. She takes the lone wolf detective thing a little too far. Has she ever been kind to anyone?"

The man shook his head. "Not to my knowledge. Unless undercover. Then she becomes a whole other person."

"I can attest to that. You should've seen her after the party, she just blew up!"

The two continued to have a few laughs and got to know each other better. She could see why it was so simple for him to get the scoop on people, he was easy to talk to, and then eventually they'd say the wrong thing and he'd pocket the information for another time.

* * *

"Mills!"

Regina looked up to see James standing at the doorway of her office. After so many years on the force, she had been upgraded from a cubicle to her own office. It allowed her to avoid interacting with people, something she was thankful for on most days. "Yes?"

She had long forgone the need to be respectful to her superiors. Her mother had always told her that respect showed submission, and if she ever wanted to reach the top anywhere, she had to be assertive and show everyone that she wasn't someone to be trifled with. Due to that, James didn't even bat an eye at the harsh answer, and instead plowed on. "I'm making Swan your new permanent partner."

The brunette was sure she heard wrong. "Are you out of your mind? I'm not working with that incompetent dunce!"

"You two worked well together last night, and the higher ups think it's a wonderful idea."

"I refuse!"

James smirked. Although he had knew that Regina would never treat him with respect, he didn't accept it. To make up for that, he salivated the moments that he could anger her. Bonus points if he got to see her blow up like that. It was his personal revenge for having to deal with the condescending detective. "Not my call Mills. The boss said so. If you want to try and deal with Spencer personally, you know where his office is."

Regina grimaced. Albert Spencer, Captain of the Boston PD, was a hell of a man. He was worse than James, and that was saying something. It looked like she was going to be stuck with Swan.

* * *

Emma was in a frenzy. Just her luck to have to deal with an emergency like this. She made sure her papers were in order and everything was locked. Grabbing her jacket, the blonde was rushing out of the cubicle in seconds. Unfortunately, Emma's mind was on the fastest route she should take to get to the hospital, and she didn't see the path ahead of her.

In what felt like a repeat of five years ago, Emma Swan went crashing headfirst into Regina, and although thankfully Emma didn't have a cup of coffee, Regina did have a stack of papers. Well, it used to be a stack of papers. Now they were like overgrown rectangular confetti, floating around. The blonde's eyes widened. She didn't have time for this.

Picking herself up from the floor, she didn't even look back as she continued her sprint towards the elevators. "Sorry!" was the only thing Regina heard as a recognition that she had even crashed into her.

Oh Regina was pissed alright. She was going to make Emma Swan pay. No way was she letting the immature blonde get away with crashing into her twice without so much as a helpful consideration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter!
> 
> Next up we'll see why Emma was running out to go to the hospital, plus more antics with these ladies.
> 
> Thanks as always for the support!


	3. Yet Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we go! More for these two budding detectives...well okay they're not budding at all right now, but semantics y'know.
> 
> So we last left off Emma rushing to the hospital for some reason, leaving Regina in a similar position from 5 years ago, except instead of coffee, it's papers. But she's still pissed. Ooooh boy is she pissed.
> 
> I hope everyone enjoys this!

Emma practically burst into the hospital, and wildly searched for someone who could direct her to where she wanted to go. 5 minutes later, and she saw the familiar woman who had called her there. "Mary Margaret!"

The woman turned and quickly went to meet Emma, trying to explain what had happened, but her frantic words were making her seem like she was rambling, "Emma, I'm not even sure what happened. One minute he was fine and the next he was pirouetting on the stairs..."

She squeezed the other woman's shoulders gently to calm her down, and then went inside the room. He looked so small in the mass of sheets and the cast that was too big for his arm. "So kid, when did you join the circus?"

"Mama!" Henry perked up seeing his mom come in, and the blonde quickly made her way to sit at the edge of the child's bed. "I made a boo-boo."

"I know you did, that's why you're in the hospital." Mary Margaret had had a full blown panic attack when she called her an hour or so ago, which didn't help to soothe Emma's nerves, even after she finally managed to understand what the woman was trying to say between wracking sobs and broken explanations. But then again, Mary Margaret had always been a worry-wart. It was the one thing she hated about her sister, because every little thing that happened turned into something akin to a national disaster. How the woman dealt being a daycare supervisor was beyond her.

Henry, her 4-year old son, was flustered as Emma quickly reprimanded him, before going off to find the doctor to get a diagnostic report.

"Well he's an active one alright. Thankfully it's only his left arm that took the brunt of it, his knees and shins just have some minor bruising, but he'll be fine. I just have to go check on something first, and then I'll come back so we can sign the papers and you'll be good to take him home. I'd give him a few weeks of recovery until it all heals, and he should come back in a week to change his bandages. He needs plenty or rest, and because I know every child tries it, please make sure he knows he can't use his cast as a baseball bat, or to try to test its durability, it can break and it won't do anything good to his recovery."

Emma nodded in understanding, and watched the lady leave, presumably to check on other patients.

"So, is Henry going to be fine?" She turned and saw Mary Margaret walking up to her with two cups of coffee.

Grabbing one cup her sister offered, Emma sighed, "Yeah, just needs rest and relaxation. In a couple of weeks he should be right as rain."

Taking a sip, Mary Margaret stewed over the information. This day had been hectic for her, between Henry and the daycare, she just needed to go home and have a relaxing bath.

Soon enough, the doctor came back and Henry was discharged. A few minutes into the ride and the kid was already conked out in the backseat of Emma's car.

"Before I forget, tomorrow is Staff Day at the daycare."

Emma hummed. Every month Mary Margaret's daycare had a Staff Day, wherein she and the handful of other workers had a meeting after the daycare closed to discuss Inventory Supplies and a whole bunch of other stuff that Mary Margaret had once explained, but Emma hadn't paid the least bit of attention to. "Don't worry about it, I'll pick Henry up."

Due to Emma's busy job, she had enlisted the help of her sister in helping to take care of her son beyond daycare hours. It wasn't an ideal situation, Emma hated being so much time away from him, but working in law enforcement was never easy. Mary Margaret welcomed the opportunity to hang out with her nephew, so she was more than glad to help Emma to take care for the young boy.

"Well, this is my stop. Sorry about Henry, again."

The blonde waved her off. "Don't worry about it, if not tonight, Henry would've tried another time. Don't beat yourself up over it Mar."

"True, kids give a new definition to 'don't knock it till you try it.'"

Emma chuckled, trying not to be too loud or wake Henry. They quickly hugged and said their farewells, going home to get ready for another day.

* * *

"So, in the doghouse with your partner...how are you going to solve it?"

Emma had been dozing off - in her defense, it was way too early for any normal human being to be awake and functioning properly - and turned to face her cubicle entrance where Sidney was currently standing with a smirk on his face.

"What did I do?" Emma asked.

Well it came out more like a slur, making Sidney chuckle. "You mean you don't remember running into Mills and sending her crashing...once again? You must have a death wish for doing it twice. And for not helping her either time, you're probably double dead."

Yesterday's fiasco had completely flown right over her head after she had ran out to the hospital because of Henry. She cringed inwardly at remembering the terrible crash yesterday where she practically bolted out of the office, panicking after hearing her sister's frantic sobs. Knowing Bitch Frost's tendency to not take bullshit for an answer, Emma was going to be hard-pressed to earn sympathy points after yesterday. Just what she needed.

"Yeah well, I'm about to go for the triple combo and try to apologize." Emma stood up, feigning bravado that she certainly did not possess, and certainly not at 7 in the morning. "If you don't hear from me, grab anyone and break down Her Majesty's office. We're in a building full of cops, and I'd doubt she'd try anything, but then again, this is Regina Mills we're talking about."

Sidney just chuckled once more as he stood aside to let Emma pass. "Your funeral."

"Don't I know it."

* * *

Regina should have made a bet with herself on how soon she was to expect the sorry excuse for a detective that is Emma Swan to appear at her door, coming up with yet another hare-brained excuse as to why she had crashed into her, again.

When she heard knocks on the door, Regina plastered her patented smirk in place. It was well-known that this smirk made even the toughest criminals cry, and she had yet to meet anyone who could resist it. It was how she got so good at her job, she could terrorize anyone to give her the answers she needed. "Enter."

And indeed Emma Swan peeked her head in, and seeing the smirk, the blonde visibly bristled, coming to stand near the doorway, hands at her side. Oh she was going to make that woman rue the day she decided to make an enemy out of Regina Mills, and if the blonde wasn't walking out with her tail between her legs in 3 minutes, Regina was going to be disappointed in herself for losing her touch. "Come to see if I have anything else that needs to be knocked over?"

"Actually no, I-"

Regina wasn't even going to let Emma voice her thoughts. She had better things to do than having to deal with this. "I assure you  _dear_ , I could care less about whatever excuse you think will get me to pity you and accept the fact that in the past 5 years, you've managed to knock me down and make an ass out of myself not once, but twice, without the least consideration in helping me afterwards. Now I suggest that you make yourself scarce before I get really ambitious and decide to make the trip up to Albert Spencer's office and truly make sure that not only you are demoted, but also driven out of the Boston PD and that no Force in all of Massachusetts will even want to  _think_  about hiring you. Am I clear?"

She was surprised at seeing the hard-set glare she received in return, though she kept her face composed and even. "Crystal clear,  _your Majesty_. You know, I can see why everyone in this department avoids you. It's not because of admiration for you. Not even fear or intimidation. It's because they're disgusted that you can't be bothered to think of us as humans, and that one, or hell, two mistakes all of a sudden makes us the lowest of the low scum on your list. You can't even fathom the fact that maybe,  _just maybe_ , I had a good reason for running out. You truly  _are_  heartless."

Before Regina could retaliate, Emma walked off, slamming the door shut behind her with such a force that the walls shook, and a pen-holder on top of her desk rattled and fell.

* * *

Regina Mills was not feeling guilty.

That was a preposterous notion, and if that part of her mind had been a bug, she would be doing her darn best to squander them with the underside of her shoe. Unfortunately, since that said thought was merely happening in her mind, she was forced to come up with another reason - very similar to guilt, but certainly not it - as to why she was feeling like this.

By the time the afternoon rolled around, Regina had settled with: curiosity.

Yes, she was just curious to find out what was the  _excellent_  reason as to why Emma Swan believed that crashing into her yesterday was a completely excusable event. Certainly wanting to be on time for her first day on the job was not it, so what could this one be?

And she had concocted a perfect plan to find out. James had given her some files for potential new cases she could take on, and unfortunately, the decision had to be unanimous, meaning that the Rookie had to agree. So she was going to use this to get the reason out, and get that nagging and traitorous thought out of her head.

Making her way to her partner's desk, she found it empty. Part of her was actually relieved, however bizarre it actually felt. So she just went back to her desk and busied herself with other papers and outstanding forms she had been saddled with.

A few hours later and she finally heard her partner's annoying voice filtering through her door, which had been left slightly ajar. Deciding that there was no time like the present, Regina stood up and walked towards the Rookie's desk, arms laden with folders, determined to abate her curiosity.

"Hi!"

The one thing Regina Mills would've never expected to be met with when she finally came to stand in front of Emma Swan's cubicle, was a small child. But despite her seeming heartlessness, as Emma had so eloquently put it, she was able to soften up for children. "Hello, and who are you?"

"I'm Henry!" The young boy waved his left arm, that Regina noted was in a cast.

"Well it's very nice to meet you Henry; what happened to your arm?"

"I made a boo-boo yesterday. My auntie and mama weren't happy about it."

Regina could see the guilt in the boy's eyes, so she decided to not press for more information regarding the boy's accident. "Perhaps you should go find your parents now? I'm sure they must be worried about you."

Little Henry shook his head. "Mama told me to wait  _here_."

She was puzzled, and it showed as she began to ask, "Here? Why would she..."

"Maybe it's because she doesn't want her kid running around and getting into trouble." Regina whipped around at hearing the voice and was faced with a very smug-looking Emma Swan leaning against the entrance. "I know, it's a shocking fact, I'll let you work out the sheer brilliance for a minute."

"You...you have a son?"

It wasn't Emma, but rather Henry who answered with a grin. "Yep!"

She mentally slapped herself for not seeing the resemblance. Then it clicked. Henry mentioned an accident yesterday. This must have been where Emma had run off to. "Ms. Swan, a minute?"

Without waiting, she walked off a bit of a distance so she was out of the general earshot, as well as Henry's. Emma made her way to where Regina stood after a few seconds, and then stood in front of the brunette, hands in her pockets. "If you're going to reprimand me for having a kid in the office, I literally have no one else to leave him with, and Ruby's busy with a case so I can't leave him with her either and-"

"No. I wanted to...apologize for earlier. I'm assuming yesterday's fiasco was because you were running to deal with your son's accident?"

Emma was flabbergasted, but quickly recuperated. "Yeah, my sister isn't the best at not panicking, and when she called me she was practically having a mental breakdown, so I just bolted out of here. For the record, I am sorry for running into you...yet again."

Regina saw Emma flash a smile, one that Regina returned, albeit hers was certainly much smaller, and imperceptible if you weren't standing right in front of her. "Just make sure you don't do it again. But anyway, I came here so you can help pick our new case. It needs to be a joint decision."

"Yeah sure, do you want to choose together, or should I take a look and then meet up to decide?"

Regina had had her fill of playing social, so she just shoved the folders into Emma's arms and responded, "The latter. Do try and have your decision before the end of the day? I'd like to get started on research tonight."

Emma noted the quick change in demeanour, but decided that right now, she shouldn't ask. "Yeah, sure thing."

Emma then spent the next couple of hours poring over the 6 cases, giving a more cliff-notes and G rated version of the cases to her very curious son. Despite the fact that Emma knew that Henry would pick cases depending on what interest a 4-year old boy, she was having a ball hearing him try to figure out what case she should pick.

Before they could reach a final verdict, her boss showed up. "Swan, my office in 5...leave the kid."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter! It was a little bit filler-ish, to show Regina meeting Henry, and establishing her as not that heartless, though we all know Regina's a big softie.
> 
> But worry not, we'll be back with more detective things, the case with Gold, Hood and Neal will be making its rounds again by the next chapter!
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed it, and let me know what you think!


	4. Change of Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And back with this story!
> 
> James was telling Emma to go to his office for some reason, Regina just met Henry, aaaand the two ladies were going to pick their next assignment!
> 
> Well not much more to say here, so I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!

Once Emma entered the office, she was told to take a seat, and waited until James began to speak.

But her boss said nothing, instead he seemingly looked like he had forgotten Emma was even in the room.

So Emma decided to bite, and ask, "Sir?"

James looked up at her inquisitively. "Yes?"

"Uh..." Before Emma could say anything else, the door opened and Regina entered. Well that question was now answered.

"So good you could join us, Mills. Please have a seat."

Without a word of greeting, the frigid brunette sat down on the other vacant seat and stared expectantly at her boss, not even sparing a glance at Emma.

"There's been a change of plans. See the higher ups believe we'd get more from the Gold case if we were more informed on their little scheme. Right now we'd just be arresting them without any base-"

"How about intention to commit a crime? I hardly think any of those players at the party would even attend such an event if they were planning on turning a new leaf," Emma said, interrupting James.

"For once, I have to agree. I hardly think we'd be too off base working off the speculation that they went to that party for more than just mingling. No, those people had a purpose being there," Regina added.

"Perhaps, but Spencer has put out the order, he wants to know more, maybe catch them in the act. We'd be able to bring them in, but we want Gold. His connections mean that any time we try to catch him, he has an exit strategy. The plan is to destroy his entire empire. For that, we need to conduct a series of steps. We need to destroy his credibility, that way his benefactors will be less inclined to get him out of a sticky situation. Put a stop to his domain, from the inside out. You two are going to help."

"One problem with that, Nolan," Regina interjected, throwing a cool glare at Emma before continuing, "the Rookie here fumbled up my attempts to establish my cover story with Gold the night of the party."

Nolan rolled his eyes and said, "Make something up Mills. Don't be a stick in the mud. Say you were trying to be romantic and not bring work to the middle of things. From what I heard, Gold is a romantic, so he'll probably eat that shit up with a golden spoon."

Emma was barely able to hide the derisive snort from hearing Nolan's answer. Her respect for her boss just went up a thousand percent. She could feel Regina quickly glare at her, before responding, "Very well. So this will be our mission for now?"

"Yeah. Work out your stories and whatnot. There are some things included in the briefing that you must adhere to. Not my call. You guys have a month."

"A month?!" Emma exclaimed. "30 days to bring down his empire?"

"Gold's empire is a house of cards. Make a dent and it will wobble. Manage to take out one card at the bottom, and everything falls apart. But you'll need to be smart about this. The guy is usually one step ahead of the situation. So it'll involve some tricking. But you will have all the force's resources available to you. Spencer wants these guys caught, and given 25 to life. So get to it." James handed out two folders for the women, and then ushered him out of his office.

After both women left James' office, they stood there, staring at one another.

"I suppose it'll be a late night for us, if we're to get started," Regina said, and then added. "We can order some food for your son, and hole up in my office and figure out how to work on this."

Emma bit her lip, hiding the surprise that Regina even considered Henry in her plans, and said, "Actually, I need to take Henry back home...maybe you can come to my place and we'll work from there?"

Regina considered the blonde's offer. It would be more comfortable than the office. "Very well."

"Great, if you want to go home to pack an overnight bag or something, I'll go with Henry to pick up some food for the three of us. Is Chinese okay?"

The brunette was left blinking once more at a disarming question, and the clearly laid out plan. "Y-yes, Chinese is fine."

"Great, now come on so I can write my address down on a piece of paper so you know where to go."

* * *

It was nearly half an hour after they parted ways that Regina found herself standing in the doorway of her partner's apartment. It was certainly a nice place, meaning that the Rookie clearly had been paid well for her work, and therefore wasn't as incompetent as Regina originally thought. But now was not the time to muse on such matters, so she knocked, and waited.

From inside, Emma cursed loudly as she stubbed her toe in a rush to open the door. Once she did, Regina had to fight a chuckle seeing the blonde clearly flustered and hair a bit wild. "You know, there was no rush to open the door, I would've waited."

Emma scoffed, and smirked, "Of course, your Majesty, but it's not polite to keep the queen waiting."

Regina rolled her eyes. "You are insufferable."

"So I've been told. Now do you want to keep bantering a bit more, or will you grace me by entering?"

"Might as well come in, after all the trouble you went to curse whatever you crashed into 3 generations into the future," Regina smirked at seeing the blonde blush. She could be quite foul-mouthed at times.

After Regina had come in, Emma closed the door and sidestepped Regina in order to lead her to the kitchen. Suddenly she turned and said, "Four generations actually, I said 'your grandchildren's children will feel it for eternity'."

Regina gave a mock expression of interest. "Fascinating. I trust that by now your son is well-attuned to your colourful language?"

Emma leant against the countertop of her kitchen, crossing her arms in front of her, and ground out, "Is that meant to be a subtle complaint regarding my parenting abilities? Because I know you might hate my guts, but insulting how I raise my kid-"

The brunette hadn't ever seen the other woman take something so personal, but she knew she had to rectify it. So while Emma spoke, Regina went and put her hands on the blonde's arms, and gently said, "Emma, stop."

She did pause, heeding Regina's words, but it was more due to confusion. The other woman was standing very close to her, and actually called her by her name for once.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up what is clearly, a touchy subject..."

Now, it was Emma's turn to be completely speechless. Had an alternate version of Regina appeared when she wasn't looking? Eventually she managed to say, "Suffice it to say that other mothers and some of Henry's teachers don't think I have what it takes to raise him, so I get kind of defensive when someone brings something up. Hell even my own sister admonishes me sometimes. But in any case, Henry's already fast asleep and he wouldn't have heard anything. I hope you don't mind that he won't be joining us for dinner, but he was tired and it's been a long day for the kid."

Regina saw the subtle change in topic, but decided that it was probably for the best to allow it. "That's quite alright. Besides, I don't imagine he'd want to hear about drug dealers and crime bosses."

"Nope, wouldn't let him. I might swear up and down around him, but I always give him the kid's cut version of things. No way am I traumatizing my kid like that."

The brunette smiled, and realized she still had her hands on the blonde's arms, before immediately letting go. "Well then, I suppose we better get started in figuring out how we're going to do this. Have you gotten a chance to look over the briefing?"

"Only the first page, which has info on Gold, or as much as is available from the PD records, you?"

"Not yet. Shall we?"

"I'll bring the food over and we can set up our stuff. I get the feeling it'll be a long night for us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter!
> 
> On the brink of intensity, and we're getting into the meat of things, so more intensity and undercover shenanigans await!
> 
> And would you look at that! Regina does have a heart, awww.
> 
> For the hell of it, Emma yelled out "motherfucking shit! I swear I'll kick you so hard, your grandchildren's children will feel it for eternity!"
> 
> It was just a ficus plant, by the way.
> 
> Just to give everyone an idea, this fic will be longer, I'm thinking some 20+ chapters, so we've definitely got a while to go!
> 
> Sorry if this chapter was a little shorter than intended, but I want next chapter's complete focus to be setting up of who all our main players are, and it felt weird going from "awkward caring scene" to "let's get down to business" type of scene.
> 
> I'd love to know your thoughts on this chapter!


	5. Establishing A Cover

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooo! I hope everyone's excited! Lots of fun planning and talking and undercover shenanigans ahead!
> 
> Also I've been on a roll, writing practically 2 chapters per day, it's crazy!
> 
> Not much more to say except enjoy!

Emma and Regina cracked open their take-out containers and opened their folders to the first page. Regina took out a legal notepad and a pen, ready to write down pertinent information.

"Alright, so he's Scottish, mid 50s, had a marriage with this one lady until she left him for another man. Only son is Neal Cassidy," Emma said, glancing over at the first sheet before grabbing some food from her carton with her chopsticks.

"Mhmm, moved to the States and started to build his empire, where it has been growing strong for some nearly 30 years."

Emma turned the sheet to look at the long list of things Gold had his greedy hands in. "Yeah, he mainly controls drugs and money. We should probably try to tackle his drug shipment. It'll be easier to topple without him doubting us."

"Agreed, who should be our scapegoat?"

Both women turned their sheets to look at the known associates.

"Cassidy," Emma said after a moment's thought, putting her carton down.

"You want his son to be the scapegoat?" Regina asked incredulously. "You do realize Gold will never buy it, right? He'll see that someone's setting him up."

"Actually, far from it. Neal and his dad have a rocky relationship at best, but Gold believes that keeping his son close will get himself back into Neal's good graces. A betrayal to break away wouldn't be far away from consideration."

Regina frowned, looking at the blurb beside Neal's name. "Okay, where in the world did you get  _that_  conclusion?"

"Undercover mission nearly 5 years ago, trying to bring Cassidy in," Emma responded, leaning back and intertwining her hands behind her head.

"That's how you knew so much about him during the party. But you're not worried he might make you?" Regina asked in trepidation.

"Nope. Guy was punch drunk during that time and going through a rough patch with his dad. Not to mention I was brunette for that mission. Men are terrible at putting names to faces when they don't look completely identical to their mental image."

She nodded slowly. "So what happened during that mission?"

Emma's expression changed instantly, turning hard-set as she picked up her carton once more. "Didn't pan out. Guy just ran off one day."

Regina sensed there was probably more to this story, but it wasn't her place to ask. As long as it didn't jeopardize their mission, she wouldn't pry. "Okay, say we go with that, how do we know he still feels the same way? For all we know he could've patched things up with Gold and they're the perfect father-son family running a drug empire."

The blonde frowned, slurping a long noodle. Once she was done, she said, "Doubt it. You don't hate someone like he does his father and then just turn around like that."

Regina gave mirthless chuckle. "You'd be surprised."

"But fine, we can go with that as our initial plan and after our preliminary meeting with Gold we can go back to the drawing board and see if everything can still work."

"Very well. The biggest issue is that we need to not only frame Neal as the snitch, but also make it believable enough. The best idea would be to get him to confess..."

Emma chuckled. "That's easy. The guy's a lightweight. Give him some strong whiskey and the guy's a goner and will be loose-tongued, spilling all his hatred for daddy dearest."

Regina would never admit it, but she was a bit jealous at how knowledgeable she was on Neal. How does someone remember this kind of stuff from an old mission nearly 5 years ago? "Okay, so that's done. The basic plan we can have is to get this big public interception of the drug shipment, hopefully a big one, and then show Neal as the rat. He is outed, the newspapers eat all that up, Gold's reputation goes down and his allies doubt his empire."

"Pretty much. Okay so let's see what our specs are: we are girlfriends, partners leading what sounds like a female cult, plenty of money because you're an heiress and I pulled a long con on some big wigs...and er, we live together?"

Regina had been nodding along while Emma listed off their roles, and when Emma reached the end, she did a double take? "Together?"

"That's what it says. In order to cement our relationship as long-time partners."

"Very well, what about Henry?"

"Henry will be staying with my sister. No way I want Gold and his probable gajillion tails and listening devices picking up on my son and having him on his radar for leverage. Plus we're supposed to be girlfriends. Throwing a son into the mix wouldn't exactly make me an available or desirable bachelorette."

"Why?" Regina asks, genuinely curious.

"No one wants to date someone with a kid," Emma replies.

"That's not true," Regina counters. She doesn't see how that would be a problem.

"Hah, find me one person who wouldn't mind so I can hook up with them. Trust me, people run away horrified when they hear about it."

Regina was obviously not going to offer herself up, she was certain Emma wasn't interested in her. But she was surprised at the bitter tone in the other woman's voice. She'd clearly had some bad experiences with this. But now wasn't the time to talk about it. Changing the subject, Regina asks, "So, which house shall we use? I think mine would serve our purposes more."

"Yours is a museum. I am not going to live in a museum," the blonde grumbles.

"Oh get over yourself, it's not a museum."

"Fine, it's an intricate installation that should be in a museum."

* * *

One week later found them settled in Regina's apartment. Henry hadn't actually been too upset with the fact that he'd be spending the next month with his aunt, but he was sad that he wouldn't get to see his mom every day.

Now, they were on their way to meet Gold officially for the first time.

Emma manoeuvred the car into an empty parking space. Gold had agreed to meet them at this swanky factory turned industrial loft that he owned, according to their research. Once she shut the engine and they got out of the car, it was showtime.

So, Regina took Emma's arm and they walked inside. They weren't sure what to expect, and were pleasantly surprised to see Gold standing there, leaning on his cane with a smile.

"Welcome! I remember you two from the party the other day."

Regina took charge. "Yes, that would be us. My name is Regina Queen, and this is Emma White."

She held out her hand and Gold brought it to his lips and kissed it. "Enchanted to meet you, Ms. Queen."

He turned and did the same to Emma's hand, "And you, Ms. White. Now, shall we get started?"

"Yes, of course," Regina said, nodding.

Together they walked through the place until they reached a comfortable lounge area with a couch and an armchair facing each other with a coffee table down the middle. Regina and Emma sat on the couch while Gold took the armchair, legs spread with the cane in the middle, still in his hands.

"Lacey!" Gold called out.

A mousy brunette walked into the room. "Yes, Mr. Gold?"

"Get me a cup of tea and...what will you ladies be having?"

"Water."

"Coffee."

Emma and Regina said in tandem, respectively.

Lacey bowed her head to show she had understood and left them.

"Now, Ms. Queen, you mentioned an interest in becoming partners?"

"Yes, we're thinking of expanding our current following by bringing in more quality products, and we hear you are the best for the job."

Gold gave an impish grin. "You heard correct. I did some research and am quite interested in your 'following'. How does it work?"

"We give homeless women housing, protection, and drugs. They in turn do services and tasks for us."

"I see. And by services you mean...?"

Regina could imagine where the man's mind was going to, and she quickly squashed the idea by saying, "Heists, robberies. Essentially the money we need to keep the cycle going."

"Intriguing. And who plans these jobs?"

"I do," Emma spoke up for the first time since telling Lacey her order.

Speaking of, Lacey had arrived and deposited their drinks on the table on top of coasters. The conversation was halted while Lacey was in the room, and once she was done, she asked if there was anything else, to which Gold just waved her off, getting her to leave them alone.

"Back to our conversation," Gold paused as he took a sip from his tea. "Piping hot. So, Ms. White, you take charge of getting an income, and you, Ms. Queen, are in charge of talking to buyers and keeping everything flowing?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Say there was an interest in this partnership, what would you want your take to be?" he asked with a predatory air that made the hair on the back of Emma's neck stand on end.

Regina didn't even flinch, instead meeting his gaze with a frosty glare. "It depends, what were you thinking?"

It was a tricky move, make them create the first offer, and therefore setting things up.

"20-80," Gold stated.

"30-70," Regina countered.

"22."

"30."

"The point of these, dearie, is for you to lower your offer when I don't agree to it. Otherwise we won't get anywhere for a while."

"Then we'll be here for a long time," Regina responded with a smirk.

Gold gave an impressed smirk. "28 is my final offer."

"30," Regina insisted.

"I don't think you quite grasp the concept of these yet."

"I think I'm understanding this quite perfectly."

"Very well, for sheer foolhardiness I will give you 30, and not a percentile more."

"Deal," Regina grinned, extending her hand.

Gold took it, and they shook on it. Suddenly a door opened bringing in one very drunk Neal Cassidy swaggering in.

"And this would be my son, Neal," Gold gestured at the man to the women's right.

Neal grinned and cocked his head at the two women. "Hey, you two were were the hot chicks at the party right, the couple...with the gorgeous blonde that refused to dance with me."

"Yes, that's us," Regina responded. She stole a glance to Emma, and saw that the blonde had frozen up, fists clenched. This wasn't good. Regina decided that she need a diversion, and picked up her mug of coffee, before turning back to Gold. "So, shall we have this in paper or?"

"Yes, yes of course, I will-"

Regina had mindfully jerked her hand enough to spill some coffee onto the two of them, but it seemed she had miscalculated and spilled quite a bit onto Emma.

"Shit!" Emma exclaimed, wincing as coffee dripped through her jeans.

"Are you alright dear?" Regina asked, wincing a bit at the little bit of coffee that had fallen on her. It really was piping hot. Turning to Gold she asked, "Do you have a bathroom nearby?"

"Of course, down the hall," Gold responded, pointing in the bathroom's direction.

Regina grabbed Emma's hand and led them to the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind them.

"Does it hurt?"

"Not too much," Emma winced, her right knee soaked. She put down the toilet cover and sat down.

The brunette went to grab some toilet paper and squatted in front of the other woman, gently dabbing over the area. After a few seconds, the area was as dry as it would get, and she stood up.

Emma went up with her, thinking they were done, but was shocked when Regina started kissing her. She wrapped her arms around the other woman in order to bring them closer, enjoying these short kisses she was getting.

"What's wrong?" Regina softly asked in between kisses. She was paranoid that there would be listening devices, but had to know what was going on.

The blonde knew there was no reason to lie. She had thought that seeing Neal again in a relatively intimate environment would be fine, but she was wrong. "Neal," she whispered back.

"What about him?"

"Henry's father."

Despite the rather simplistic answer, Regina understood what Emma meant, and she pulled back a bit to look Emma in the eyes.

Emma thought that Regina would snarl or roll her eyes, maybe even give her a curt insult at having withheld the information. She was very surprised to have Regina bring their lips back together, and even more surprised was when Regina swiped her tongue over Emma's bottom lip asking permission to deepen the kiss.

Gold could wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadaaa, that was that!
> 
> Hopefully it makes up for the shorter chapter you guys had last time.
> 
> How'd you like their undercover last names?
> 
> Also as I'm sure it's obvious, my knowledge of the criminal/drug underworld is beyond nonexistent, and ergo, this is entirely fictional and probably not even holding a smidgen of accuracy as to what would actually happen so, please keep your suspension of disbelief at the ready.
> 
> And I'm sure to no one's surprise, Neal is Henry's father.
> 
> Let me know your thoughts! Oh and double update! So you'll be getting a new chapter in a few days, or tomorrow at this rate.


	6. Trading Stories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're moving on!
> 
> More fun times with these two as they talk for a bit.
> 
> Enjoy!

One hour later and the two undercover detectives were headed back to Regina's apartment. They were silent throughout the entire ride, not because of lack of topics or awkwardness, but because Gold could've planted a bug on them for safety precaution. They knew the kingpin was a careful and conniving man, not to mention that he didn't trust easily, so planting bugs wouldn't be beyond his reach.

Not that Emma minded the silence. She had been reeling ever since that kiss. She wanted to know what it meant. Regina didn't need to kiss her to calm her down, though it certainly did do the trick. However, it really didn't help her attempts to keep her feelings for the brunette locked away in some remote corner of her mind. Truth was, Emma had had a major crush on Regina since she first met her. There had been something incredibly sexy about the brunette, even as she berated her and gave her cool looks.

But Emma could never in her wildest dreams have thought that something could come from it. Regina Mills hated her, she'd had 5 years of proof in the form glares, condescending sneers and comments. Living with her for the past week though had made her feelings for the other woman itching to burst out and it was getting increasingly hard to not want to kiss her. But she had kept a lid on it. Now though? There was going to be a very interesting conversation when they got home.

* * *

Regina had installed a device over her doorway that detected and nulled any and all bugs and recording devices. Call her paranoid, but after so many years in the force, she was nothing if not cautious.

There had been a bug planted on Emma's jacket, but apart from that, they were clean, which meant that now, they could talk.

"So," Regina started, heading into the kitchen. "What would you like to drink? Coffee? Juice?"

"Got anything stronger?" Emma responded, going to sit on the couch in the living room.

The brunette nodded and headed towards a liquor cabinet. While she poured some cider, she decided to start the conversation. "Why didn't you tell me about your past relationship with Neal?"

Emma noted that there wasn't an accusing tone to Regina's voice, of which she was thankful. "I- I don't like talking about it much."

Regina returned and handed one glass to Emma before sitting down beside her with her own glass. "Then you needn't explain."

"You're my partner, it's your right to know about this."

"And it's also your right to not have to discuss things that make you uncomfortable."

They fell into silence after that, sipping their drinks.

In the past week, they had become infinitely friendlier. They still traded barbs, but it was becoming closer to teasing and flirting rather than actual insults. It was enjoyable now to try and prod the other one. But they had also become more prone to just talking about mundane things. Nothing intimate, but there was nothing to say Emma shouldn't try.

"It was one of my very first missions. I think they bungled up the missions' hand-out, because they sent a rookie into an undercover mission to try and apprehend an experienced conman. But I didn't want to appear weak and seeming like I was trying to get just the easy jobs, so I took it. It went fine for a while, I was to be a fellow thief turned partner-in-crime turned girlfriend to Neal Cassidy. He mostly stole small stuff, trying to impress me, and booze. I had to catch him doing something major.

"So I stayed around. Until I realized that I was pregnant. Then I just tried to subtly clue the guy in that the police were closing in on him and he booked just the next day none the wiser. After that I just fed them this cock-and-bull story about him having run away, but I didn't mind the failure, I just needed to get away from the environment."

"Does anyone else know the truth?"

"My sister and my ex-partner, Ruby, are the only ones who know the truth. Everyone else thinks it was a one-night stand gone wrong, and I can't really say 'I let myself fall for a charismatic con artist and was an absolute fool'. I got desk duty after that, to protect me and Henry, the growing fetus.

"I tried my best to never get into another mission that involved him, because I was mad at myself. Mad at myself for being an idiot and falling for him. I wasn't sure what I would do if I met him again. I know it's a rookie mistake, you can laugh and berate me over it if you want," Emma sighed, pulling her knees to her chest as she took a long gulp and emptied her glass.

"I won't laugh. I had something similar happen to me. Not with a child, but getting a mission go south and screwing over royally. You remember Robin Hood from the party? Well, Robert Locksley was my mission a few years back, I was trying to catch him for fraud, and was posing as his new secretary. He had a wife, Marian, and a little boy, Roland, but he wasn't a family man. He lived to cheat with other girls, and unfortunately as his secretary, I was privy to having to welcome a lot of them into his office. It was even worse considering the walls weren't sound proof."

"Ew!" Emma exclaimed.

"Indeed. Well one day he was just completely drunk at work, and smashed his lips on mine because no one else was apparently available that day. It was just his luck that Marian had come in for a surprise visit. Suffice it to say she was thoroughly ready to tear me a new one and go to the police and report me. I let her leave all angry, and then I quit. Later on that day I was back at the station and met Marian. I explained everything to her and supported her through everything. We're actually friends now, I helped her to buy her new home so she could raise Roland comfortably.

"What I meant to explain is that not all missions go the way we plan them, and I don't blame you for not wanting to tell me. I'm certain it couldn't have been easier." Regina glanced over at Emma, and smiled.

Emma returned the smile, meeting Regina's gaze. "Thanks for understanding. And for the kiss, you didn't have to."

"But I did. After all, if my girlfriend needs comforting, what better way to provide for it?" Regina teased, getting a chuckle in response.

They only had 3 weeks left of their mission, and Regina hoped that maybe they could develop something more. Before this mission, she had found Emma to be insufferably charming in a way that annoyed her because she really shouldn't be attracted to someone that she supposedly hated, and who most likely hated her back. But since this mission started, the 'insufferable' part was quickly disappearing, and slowly lending to have Emma as adorably charming. Seeing her grumble around in the morning was always incredibly endearing.

While they were in the bathroom earlier today, and Emma was in that stunned state, Regina thought that it was only natural to kiss her, and she was thankful that Emma hadn't been completely horrified.

Now it was Regina's turn to be surprised as Emma gently pressed her lips to Regina in a soft kiss, before breaking apart.

"Thanks, babe," Emma murmured against her lips as they parted, before standing up to go put her glass in the sink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter!
> 
> A little bit more depth on these two ladies and their feelings that they're totally not ready to act out on entirely, instead just skirting around like the idiots they are.
> 
> It's not as long as usual chapters, but I felt that it was important to establish the change in their rhythm and relationship.
> 
> So! What is up next from me: the final 2 chapters of Kissing Booth, a little holiday drabble, and we'll see what else!
> 
> I hope everyone has a fantastic holiday, let me know what your thoughts were, and I'll be writing more in the coming year!


	7. The Lair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay let's get going!
> 
> This chapter: villain perspective!~ for a little bit at least.
> 
> Things are heading forward, so let's see what happens!

For the rest of the day, Emma was calling up as many women as she knew in the force. Gold wanted to check out their facilities as part of the first steps in their deal, and for that, they had to make things look believable, which included the women in their little cult. Regina - due to her icy disposition, and therefore lack of friends in the force - was tasked with dealing with bureaucracy and finding the location of their facilities.

After they had finished with that, they went shopping. Both to the mall for supplies and furniture, and to the precinct's evidence archives, where they could use some confiscated materials to populate their new lair. They had also rented a moving truck to help them carry everything.

8 hours later, making sure that they weren't being followed, they made their way to the location, a shifty place that had once been the headquarters of an actual drug ring that the BPD had taken down a couple of years back.

"Are we sure this is it? I don't think 'Michael's hair salon' or that bookstore will particularly serve our needs." They were a bit further north from downtown, parked by the curb as they stared at the address Regina had been given.

"Perhaps it's a little hole in the wall?" Regina suggested. Both stores were separated by an alleyway. It was wide enough for the truck, so Emma steered into the mouth of the alleyway, and accelerated into it. Soon enough, the alleyway expanded onto what looked like an old shipping dock. "There's the door," Regina pointed out.

Veering the vehicle towards the dock, Emma did a 3-points turn so that the back of the truck was now facing the dock, making it easier to unload, and shut off the engine. "So what do you say, want to go check it out?"

* * *

"And they check out?" Gold asked his infallible assistant.

Zelena nodded. "Yes they do. I checked with our sources and they seem legit."

"Excellent, that is all. Please call my son and tell him to come here, will you?" With that, Gold dismissed her.

A few minutes later, and the door slammed open. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, close the door and sit down Bae." Gold pointed to the chair across from his desk.

Neal shut the door, and didn't follow the rest of the commands. "It's Neal. And I'm not one of your partners or associates, so I refuse to sit and have you treat me like I am."

The tension between the Gold family was rough. When Kieran Gold had moved to America with Baelfire, he had wanted his son to have a good life, that despite their fractured family, they could be happy. So he told young Baelfire Gold that he was going to make things right, make sure that he would be taken care of, and would never want for nothing. He opened his pawnshop, intending to be a good man with a stable business.

He didn't even last one year before things changed drastically. Boston's mafia boss Zoso had a particular interest on the humble pawnshop owner, and with promises of money and power, Kieran was sold. 6 months later, and Kieran was on the high rise for taking over Zoso's empire. The old man was on the verge of keeling over, and when he did die - jury's still out on the cause, but the soup was the most popular theory - Gold became the successor.

By that point, he had lost his son. Baelfire ran away from home, changed his name, and led his own life of crime. That's how they stayed for nearly 30 years, but recently, Gold used his connections to track down his son. Things were still rocky, but Kieran truly believed that he could get his son back.

"Very well. You remember the women from yesterday?"

Neal shrugged. "Yeah, vaguely. The blonde and brunette right?"

"Precisely. They will be very big clients for me-"

"Cut to the chase. What do you want?" Neal had no time for this. The only reason he had accepted his father's pleas to reconcile was because his expensive lifestyle was making a hole on his finances, and knew his dad would bend over backwards if he believed it'd help with their relationship.

"You on your best behaviour. I believe both Ms. Queen and Ms. White will attempt to make sure they are putting their trust in the right place and with the right people. I can't have any more slip-ups like your antics with the Triad."

Neal let out a hollow laugh. "Oh please,  _papa_ , spare me. I'm not your trained monkey."

Grinding his teeth together, Gold reined the instinct to take a physical reaction to this insubordination. But this was his son, not some disposable lackey. "I know you're not, but I'd rather like to avoid having to do damage control as I fix your mistakes."

" _My_  mistakes? Who abandoned who?"

It was his weakness. They both knew it. Kieran Gold never forgave himself for how he lost his son. "Bae...please."

Neal said nothing; he just turned around and left the room, making sure to shut the door with a loud slam.

* * *

Emma had been tasked with taking Gold to their facility, which she had affectionately dubbed The Lair, much to Regina's chagrin. Ruby was going to be accompanying her today, since Emma didn't trust herself with the possibility that Neal would be there. Since Ruby knew about the whole Neal situation, she would be her rock, grounding her to prevent anything drastic from happening. Plus, Regina had reasoned, it'd help their credibility to show the other women as more than just incidental decoration, and actually having agency.

"Do you think it's safe leaving the Ice Queen alone with everyone?" Ruby suddenly asked as they were driving.

With a smile, Emma said, "Yeah of course. I think her disposition's been a bit sunnier lately. She can actually be pretty nice."

"Oh no." Ruby quickly moved her hand to Emma's forehead, checking her temperature. "Did she brainwash you?"

"Oh knock it off Rubes," Emma playfully swatted her friend. "It's me, no brainwashing involved."

"Well I detected a trace of a fever, so maybe that's it."

Emma just rolled her eyes, a grin on her face. "I'm serious, she's a bit standoffish at first, but talking to her after a while, it gets enjoyable."

"She's a goner, ladies and gents," Ruby snickered.

When they arrived at Gold's place, they went up to the door and rang the doorbell. As they waited, Emma held from laughing at Ruby's antics. While Emma was dressed in her usual jeans and leather jacket combo, Ruby's attire went beyond risque. Starting with her dramatically straightened hair, Ruby had donned a red streak to it - "It'll help sell the part!" Ruby reasoned - she also had put on heavy makeup, with her luscious lips painted a similar shade of red as the streak in her hair. Going to her clothes, Ruby was wearing a dress shirt that had the top 4 buttons undone, meaning that her bosom was very visible, and even if it weren't, the lacy black bra was visible through the sheer white fabric of the shirt. A very loose tie hung from her neck.

What took the cake from the entire outfit were the booty shorts. Emma was sure she had underwear that were longer than whatever Ruby was wearing. Especially in February, that outfit looked like torture; she made a mental note to give her friend a few extra bucks for braving the Boston winter like this. At least the brunette's boots went up to her knees and offered some heat, though she could tell that Ruby was shaking a bit.

Thankfully right then, the door opened, but unlike the day before, Gold wasn't there to meet them.

"Hey Lacey, is Gold there?" Emma asked as they entered the house to wait.

The woman looked surprised that Emma would even remember her name, but she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, he should be down any second." Looking to Ruby, she raked her eyes down the figure in front of her. "I don't believe I've met  _you_ before..."

Emma felt like she had been transported to a rom-com movie. She briefly wondered if she should nudge her friend to react.

"Yeah, I'm R-Red."

At least she'd been sufficiently lucid to remember her cover name.

Lacey grinned, "I can see that."

Ruby gave her a salacious wink. Pulling out a sharpie from heaven knows where - no seriously, Emma had no idea where a pen of that size could fit - she walked up to Lacey and took the latter's right wrist in her left hand in one fluid motion. Still holding the sharpie with her right hand, she pushed the sleeve up, before uncapping the pen and inscribing a number.

Once she was done, Emma was trying very hard not to gape. Thankfully, Gold was coming at that moment, and she cleared her throat to get the two distracted women out of their reverie. It did the trick, both of them jumping as though burned, Lacey adjusting her shirt sleeve and Ruby tucking the sharpie back wherever she had stuffed it.

"Ms. White, I do apologize for the delay, shall we get going?" Gold asked, flashing a smirk. Emma swore like she felt the man could read her thoughts or something. She felt vulnerable.

"Yep, car's over here."

The trio went over to the car, leaving Lacey still at the door. Emma saw Ruby sneak one more wink back at her newest crush. She was certainly acting her role perfectly. A part of Emma was convinced that Ruby was enjoying this a little too much.

As Emma opened the door for Gold, they suddenly heard a voice exclaim, "Hey, wait up!"

Her heart and other vital organs plummeted to her toes as she saw Neal running up towards them.

Gold looked like Christmas had come early. "Bae, you're coming?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, papa," Neal said with well-hidden fake enthusiasm, using the brief pause where everyone was processing his arrival to jump into the car.

* * *

Ruby looked over at her friend, wondering how long it'd take for the steering wheel to crack under Emma's grip. She wished there was a way she could comfort her, but nothing would be appropriate. What she could do was silently curse the new addition to their group, glaring at him through the side mirror. He didn't notice.

Then she got an idea. Shifting in her seat to glance back at the Golds, Ruby said, "Just wanted to give you gents a heads-up, due to the nature of our place, I think it'd be best if one of you stayed outside. I'm sure you understand."

Gold nodded. "Of course, my apologies for the oversight. Neal has no problem with waiting outside."

After she turned back in her seat, she let her fake smile fall. She saw Emma glance curiously at her, and gave a subtle shrug.

Emma was reeling. Ruby had just given her an out from having to deal with Neal for longer than needed. At least now she could distract herself with driving. Except that every time she glanced through her rearview mirror, Neal was looking at her. It unnerved her. What would happen if Neal recognized her?

Soon enough, they were arriving at their destination. She did a few turns, making sure no one was following them. It was more ceremonial than anything. She was sure Gold would appreciate the gesture. Once they entered the alleyway, Emma relaxed a bit. Just a bit longer, and then she could leave Neal out in the cold.

"Here we are," Emma announced, shutting off the engine.

The four got out of the car, and Emma locked the car before making her way to the door, pulling out a key to unlock it. Turning to Neal in a last minute act of mercy, she said, "You can wait in here."

He flashed a grateful smile, glad he wouldn't have to wait here however long in the middle of an alleyway, freezing his ass off. They all went inside into a small foyer, and Emma dragged a footstool that had been haphazardly placed there, closer to Neal. "You can sit and everything." Turning to Gold, Emma asked, "Ready to go?"

"After you, Ms. White." With that, Emma started to lead them down a long flight of stairs, Gold behind her, and Ruby bringing up the rear.

When they reached the landing, Emma nodded to Ursula, a heavyset woman who was serving as their bodyguard. She could bodycheck anyone like it was nobody's business, so she was perfect for her role in their little act. Emma turned to Gold, and explained, "I hope you don't mind that we check you. The women here come to us for protection, so it's only fair we reassure them that, if you're here, it's because we're allowing it, and have verified you're legit. It's nothing personal."

Gold seemed to be perfectly understanding of the situation, holding his arms out and spreading his legs a bit as if he was at the airport. "Not a problem, Ms. White. I commend you and Ms. Queen for your dedication."

* * *

Regina had let out a growl when she saw that Neal had accompanied his father on this trip. She looked up from the security camera monitor, and was relieved when it seemed he had been left on the foyer. She instructed Tina to inform her immediately if that man budged from his seat.

She shouldn't be feeling this anger on Emma's behalf. But her feelings had been haywire ever since Valentine's Day and the kisses that she'd shared with Emma. Her extreme hatred for her partner had melted when she had started to get to know her outside of work for the past week. And now this. She was feeling protective for Emma. Walking to the main room, she stood poised as she waited for Ursula to complete her patting down with Gold.

When the trio walked through the door and into the expansive entrance room with a high vaulted ceiling, Regina strode forward, and without a preamble, pulled Emma forward and crashed their lips together for a heated kiss.

Ruby was glad that she was behind Gold, because she had just broken her cover with the way she was gaping. Oh she was so going to be questioning Emma after this was done.

After they broke apart, Regina turned to Gold, and said, "Welcome. Would you like to get started?"

Even Gold needed a moment to compose himself after that act. "Of course, let's."

Emma and Ruby trailed behind as Regina took him on a tour of their facilities, with Ruby giving Emma 'we're so going to talk after this' looks.

Truth was that they had been impressed with how expansive this place was. Emma had half a mind of buying this place after the case was done because it was just that cool. It had a library, kitchen, dining room, lounges, bedrooms - Gold wasn't allowed to go there - and even an indoor garden courtyard. Their tour ended behind a secret room that held their offices and their finances.

"So, what do you think?" Regina asked, clapping her hands together. Ruby had long ditched the tour, leaving only the two undercover detectives, and Gold.

Gold was impressed. "Charming little operation you've got here. I'm already thinking of some ideas for your expansion that we can talk over at our next meeting. I think we've got ourselves a wonderful partnership blossoming. Now, I am having a little get together tomorrow, and I'd be honoured if you two were to join me."

Emma grinned, slipping her arm around Regina's waist. "Oh we'll be there. Where at?"

"The Ritz-Carlton. The reservation's under my name. The reception begins at 6." Gold held out his hand, and Regina shook on it, followed by Emma.

"Now, I must get going, shall we?" Gold said, keeping his gaze on Emma.

"Actually," Regina began to think quickly on her feet. "I need Emma here for an important matter, Red and Ariel will take you. Darling, will you go fetch them?"

* * *

After the door closed and Gold left with his son, Emma and Regina relaxed.

This time, it was Emma who pulled Regina into a kiss. "Thanks for getting me out of driving them back," Emma said once their lips parted.

Regina shook her head, before giving Emma a sweet kiss. "You have no need to thank me, Emma."

It was easy to be like this, seeking and giving comfort to the other, without actually labelling or explaining their feelings. A bell rang overhead to let everyone know that the Golds had left, letting all the women know that they could drop their charade.

They had officially convinced Gold that they were legit. Now they had to get started on their next part.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's where I'll leave this chapter!
> 
> Fun fact: Gold's name, Kieran, apparently means 'little dark one', and 'shadowy' hence the choice. He's not exactly little, but he is a Dark One, sooo.
> 
> And a little bit of Red Beauty! What do you think, yay or nay on having it be explored a bit more?
> 
> Next up will be a new chapter of Such a Heavenly View, and then a drabble for countless lifetimes, followed by A Thief in the Night! Oh also, starting next week, I'll be doing a few things for SQ week so you can look forward to that too!
> 
> Let me know your thoughts!


	8. Double-cross the Double-crosser

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> So, our wonderful ladies have a party to get to!
> 
> And popular consensus is a resounding yes to RedBeauty, so there'll be a smattering of it every now and then.
> 
> Also fun fact, this is this fic's longest chapter thus far! More than 3,800 words!
> 
> Now, let's get on with the show!

Emma readjusted the dress for the millionth time, because it was riding up around her boobs really badly. This was part of why she didn't enjoy wearing dresses. It felt uncomfortable in all the wrong places and wearing a dress just meant the inevitable of having to wear high heels, and she had sworn bloody murder if she ever somehow managed to meet whoever invented heels. So impractical for running.

"Are you ready?" Regina asked from outside the bathroom where Emma had been silently grumbling.

"Just a min, I'm fighting my dress."

She heard Regina chuckle, and then quip, "Let me know how it goes. I have 5 down on the dress."

Oh Emma was not going to take this one sitting down. Or behind a door. So she did what any enraged woman who had to defend her honour would do in her situation. She wrenched the door open and opened her mouth wide to tell her partner off.

Except Emma was still not fully dressed, having been in the process of shifting her dress just a smidgen to the right, and was therefore uncovered from the waist up. Thankfully she was still wearing a bra, but seeing Regina turn a fresh shade of red before she even got one syllable through was enough of a victory for Emma to shut the door again, finish her readjustment, zip herself back up, and exit the bathroom. She was alone in the master bedroom when she emerged again - Regina was probably trying to find the non-toxic version of brain bleach, aka: some very strong alcohol.

She found her partner downing merely a cup of orange juice. Emma hadn't gotten a chance earlier to fully appreciate Regina's dress, and damn it looked amazing on her. It was a black dress with a red sash on her waist. Her hair was pinned up on top of her head and with her dramatic makeup, she looked beyond gorgeous in Emma's opinion. And intimidating.

"So, shall we get going?" Emma asked, grabbing her clutch from the counter.

Regina couldn't help but let her eyes rake over the now fully clothed form of her date. A dress that red should be sinful. "Y-yes," Regina said, after a few seconds of looking, cursing her dry mouth for the way her answer wavered.

* * *

The hotel was extravagant. Emma felt like she had just walked inside a palace. And with present company currently looped arm in arm with her, she felt like she was accompanying royalty. The Ritz Carlton had a modern and sleek look, but still opulent enough that it made Emma feel a little bit out of place.

After talking to the lady over at Reception, they were led to the Avery Room. Despite it being earlier than 6 pm, there were already quite a number of people there, all of them associates of Gold, which meant that they were all sketchy.

Emma leaned in super close to Regina, as if she was giving her girlfriend a kiss on the cheek, and whispered, "Jeez this place is place is a goldmine of criminals."

Regina chuckled and turned her head to meet Emma's lips with her own. After she pulled away, she responded with a smirk and a wink, "Well darling, right now, we are too."

Overall, there were about 20 or so people there. There were no immediate recognizable faces, apart from Gold himself, and much to Emma's chagrin, Neal. As soon as he saw them, Mr. Gold excused himself from the group he was talking to, and made his way over to them. "Ms. Queen, Ms. White. I'm so glad you could make it. Allow me to introduce you to a few of my other associates. Who knows, perhaps they can offer a few services to you?"

Both Regina and Emma shook Gold's hand, giving him a polite smile. He quickly introduced them to his loyal assistant Zelena. In Emma's opinion, she was a few screws short of a toolbox, but sanity probably wasn't an important requirement to work for a known kingpin.

"Now, this is Cruella," Gold said, leading them to meet a spectacularly dressed woman who had her hair parted down the middle between black and white.

Of course, Emma being Emma, just had to go for the diplomatic route and blurt out the first thing that came to mind. "Like the Disney villain?"

Thankfully, it seemed the question went over well. The woman let out a rich laugh and smirked, "Precisely. Except I'm not in the dog-skinning business, too much blood for me. But I wouldn't mind a fur coat..."

After a few minutes of conversation, they found out that Cruella was a con artist, scamming old geezers out of their money. Emma was also certain - though thankfully she did not voice that theory out loud - that the fashionista might have murdered a few of her unwitting victims who had found out the truth. It made sense for her to be in cahoots with Gold, she was sure that he didn't want someone as unhinged as Cruella on his bad side.

"At this rate, I'd be convinced we somehow crashed a Disney villain party," Emma murmured as they were left alone, walking towards the tall wall of windows, where it was quietest, each nursing a glass of white wine.

Regina gave a small chuckle, nodding. "Yes it does seem that way, doesn't it?"

"I mean really. You've got Cruella there; that guy with the perm, Blackbeard? He could totally pull off Hook, he's already got the pirate-y name. Plus you've got that shifty little weasel, he could be Peter Pan himself."

"Peter Pan was not a villain!" Regina scoffed, seeming affronted with the mere suggestion.

Emma made a face. "The guy always looked pretty weird to me. He was a kidnapper!"

Her partner merely rolled her eyes, and then said, "So who would  _we_  be, if we were Disney villains?"

Putting on a thoughtful face, Emma speculated. "You would definitely be the Evil Queen." When Regina began to look insulted, Emma added, "Oh come on, you're high maintenance, and your 'last name' is Queen. Done deal."

Not one to be outdone, Regina was quick to inject, before floundering "And you'd be..."

Emma smirked, and looked expectantly to hear the answer that seemed to fail her partner. But before Regina could wrack her brains, she was thankfully saved by Gold clinking a fork to his nearly empty wine glass. "Dinner is served. Shall we all take a seat?"

Both women went to take a seat at the long table in the middle of the room. There were two empty seats next to each other near the head of the table, and Regina had suggested on the ride there that they try to stay as close to Gold as possible for recon. And since Gold was obviously going to sit at the head of the table, it'd be the perfect place to sit. Emma to his right, and Regina right beside her. What they didn't count on was that Neal would sit right across from Emma, on Gold's left. Lucky her.

Regina, having seen how Emma stiffened, gently reached under the table to caress Emma's thigh in an attempt to distract her. Hearing Emma's breath hitch, Regina realized that she may have succeeded in distracting her, but not in the way she wanted.

"Ah darlings, is anyone sitting here?" Cruella had appeared and was pointing to the vacant chair beside Regina. They responded no and the woman sat, striking up a conversation with Mallory, who sat across the table from her. Emma tried to listen - having managed to draw Regina's hand away from her thigh and into her own hand - but she was discomfited from feeling Neal's eyes boring into her from her peripheral.

Thankfully Gold had sat down and dinner was served. Plates with portions of food were served to the middle of a table section and each group of people in that stretch of area would reach the food and pass it around. Just her luck that Emma's section was with Gold and Neal, so she was forced to pass food to him and in turn ask him to pass as well. The appetizers had gone over without incident, and when dinner was served, things got interesting.

"Hey, can you pass the potatoes?" Neal asked, flashing her a disarming grin.

Emma wordlessly grabbed the bowl and went to pass it to him. As their hands touched, she felt a folded piece of paper being shoved discreetly into her right hand. She met his eyes and frowned. He made a gesture with his eyes as if to say 'go on, take it'.

And Emma did, taking careful glances to see if Gold had caught it, but he was busy serving himself chicken.

"So Papa, food's pretty great so far, huh?" And Neal had just given her a way to look at the note without being caught or interrupted by Gold. As the kingpin went to answer his son, Emma looked down at the paper on her right hand, resting over her lap. It was a folded up dollar bill. She unfurled it and saw a message written on the top border:  _Meet me after dessert, at the Avery bar downstairs, tell no one and come alone_.

What could he possibly want to talk to her about? Nothing good, she supposed. Bunching the bill back again, she moved her right arm under the table towards Regina and gently nudged her. Regina turned to look at Emma with a questioning glance, and Emma gave her a significant look, and then gestured with her eyes over at Neal, who was still in deep conversation with his father. Regina took the note and quickly read the message. After she was done, she handed the note back and pursed her lips, saying nothing. Emma tried to discern if Regina was angry at her for the message Neal had sent, taking the note back and stuffing it into her dress pocket.

With a deep breath, Emma recomposed herself, ready to dig back in to her dinner, and trying to not get too distracted trying to discern the reason of why Regina reacted the way she did. Next thing she knew, two hands came to rest on her cheeks and she was pulled into a searing kiss with Regina. Emma's brain short-circuited. After a few seconds, she faintly heard Gold clear his throat.

They broke and Regina flashed a sly smirk at Gold. She was certainly acting bold, Emma had never pegged Regina for a big PDA type.

"So Mr. Gold," Regina began, "how did you end up with this opulent empire? You must have quite the business savvy mind."

It was clearly meant to distract him, while also getting him to puff his chest with pride, metaphorically speaking. And it worked. Gold set out on a long monologue that took them all the way through dessert.

* * *

"If you're not back in 20 minutes, I'm going in, okay?"

Emma nodded dumbly, before giving Regina a quick kiss, since it was literally the only thing her brain was capable of ordering her body to do at that given moment. She still hadn't figured out if this was Regina being careful for her work partner in a professional capacity - and what it would mean if they were outed - or genuine concern for her.

"And you know you don't have to go, right?" Regina added. They were outside the Avery Room, speaking in hushed tones where the light wasn't too bright. Emma didn't look at Regina, instead down at the carpeted floor beneath her feet. She suddenly found that a finger was hooked under her chin and pulling her head up to meet Regina's so that their lips could meet again. It was soft, comforting, reassuring. It calmed the butterflies in Emma's stomach and once they parted, Emma gave a shy smile.

"Yeah, but I might as well see what he wants. Last thing we want is for him to decide that whatever it is he wants to talk about can go to his father. I can handle myself."

Entering the bar, Emma was under the impression that she might have been a little too overconfident on her abilities to handle this. It seemed petty perhaps, that she was terrified of confronting a criminal she had allowed to get away because of a rookie mistake, but it was her failed case. Every cop had one, and to have gotten her own so early in her career, it made a dent on Emma's confidence. Especially since she got pregnant for it. Of course, she loved Henry completely. He was her sun on a dark day, when she had particularly gruesome cases, she could always count on her little boy to make her feel happy. But damn if she didn't resent the situation that got her pregnant in the first place.

She saw Neal sitting over at the bar in the middle of the room, the chandelier hanging overhead lighting his face as he nursed a drink. Taking a deep breath to steel herself, she stalked over to the empty high chair beside him and sat down.

Neal flashed a lopsided grin at her once he recognized who sat down beside him. "Hey, you made it."

Emma gave a brusque nod and looking over at the bartender, she asked him for a vodka on the rocks. "Yes, what did you want to talk about?" she asked, keeping her voice even and refusing to look over at him.

"Oh come on, don't give me that. I know it's you, Emma  _Peters_. You may have dyed your hair blonde, but I still recognize you."

She said nothing at first, merely pursed her lips and took a sip of her newly deposited drink. "You have me mistaken for someone else. Now if you'll excuse me-"

Before she could move away, Neal put his hand on her forearm. The grip wasn't too tight, but it still made her pause, and turn to look at him with a murderous glare.

Neal scoffed, a playful smile on his lips. "You're seriously going to take me for a fool? You can't bullshit a bullshitter, remember? Now, who is your mark? Your gorgeous arm candy, or my father?"

So he still thought of her as only a con artist. That was good. Putting on a demure facade, she asked, "What's it to you? You want in on the take?"

Neal gave a friendly smirk. "You know I can't say no to a con." He shifted his chair closer to Emma's, and leaned forward, looking expectant at her answer.

"And what makes you think I should trust you? For all I know, you could rat me out." Emma was wary. This could be great for their plan if he was legit, but if he was reporting to his father, this could blow up in their faces. It was a high-risk gamble, but Emma was prepared to take it.

"Since I really have no interest in Regina Queen and what happens to her, I'm gonna guess the target's my father. And I thought I had made it clear what I think about my shitty father."

Emma scoffed. "Yeah, but that was some 5 years or so ago. Now you're tight with your old man, and I'm supposed to just trust you? I wasn't born yesterday Cassidy, and like you so rightly said, don't bullshit a bullshitter. Besides, for all you know, I might have both of them as my marks. Use Queen to get close to Gold, screw them both over, and take his empire and her resources."

Neal's smirk became more predatorial, and he said, "If that's your con, then count me in. The only reason why I'm even with the bastard is because he'll do anything to try to win me back, and that includes footing my bills. It's all a matter of convenience, I'm sure you can appreciate it."

"I can definitely appreciate it, but I don't like taking chances with people who have just admitted they'd easily backstab me if the opportunity called for it, and if it'd further their gain," Emma countered, leaning forward and glaring at Neal. "So if you want in, I need a commitment that you're not going to screw me over. My cards are on the table, I need something from you."

"Yeah, makes sense, so what do you want?" Neal asked, dropping his voice, shifting his eyes to see if anyone was listening. The bartender was busy on the other side of the bar, and there was no one around them, so they were clear.

Emma had him there. As a precaution, they had installed microphones on their dresses to record everything tonight just in case, and this was her in. "Okay so answer me this: you hate your dad, but he's giving you a comfy spot in his organization. Got a nice home, everything's paid for, and you're a protected man. Why would you even be remotely interested in double-crossing him?"

That apparently opened a can of worms for Neal. "He's a piece of shit. He thinks money is going to sway me? He fucking abandoned me, I was barely a teenager! He cared more about whose blood needed to be spilled, and turf wars, than what his own son was doing. Whether I was getting bullied by the other kids, or had any problems at school. He just didn't care. Personally, the more damage you do, the better. I want to see him suffer like I did."

Emma was convinced. "Alright, I'm convinced. But for now I'm still doing recon and ironing out my battle plan. I'll contact you when I've got something figured out and we can take the next step, okay?"

Neal nodded. "Thanks Em. I just want to see him knocked down a peg...or 50."

Emma gave him a conspiratorial smirk, and watched him leave, drinking more from her glass. As soon as he left, she sagged, trembling ever so slightly.

Not even 5 minutes later, Regina sat beside her, ordered just a glass of cider, and waited. After the bartender deposited the drink without a word being spoken between the two women, Regina ventured to break the silence, glancing at her partner. "What did he want?"

She received no answer, nor any recognition to show that Emma was even aware of where she was or who was beside her, so Regina tentatively reached out to touch Emma's forearm, inadvertently where Neal had placed his hand earlier.

But this touch was different. Where Neal's hand was meant to stop her, Regina's touch was to encourage her to go on. It soothed her and got her out of her reverie, but she still refused to look at Regina. So, downing the rest of her drink, Emma began to tell the story of what had transpired.

Once Emma was done, Regina tried to wrap her mind around the entire story. "So we're going to double-cross the double-crosser?"

This got Emma to chuckle, and nod. "Yeah, essentially that's the plan."

Regina decided to turn the conversation from business to personal. "How are you feeling?"

Emma frowned. "Fine? Was there something funky I ate that should've made my stomach queasy?"

"Not at all. I'm asking about your mental health. You just had to deal with Neal, listen to his sob story, and form a partnership with him, I would be surprised if you're 'fine', as you say."

Rather than answer her, Emma finally turned to look at her, searching her face for some unasked question. Or rather, a question that was soon voiced. "Why do you care?"

It wasn't said maliciously, so Regina merely scrunched her eyebrows in confusion and tilted her head slightly to the side. "You're my partner, why shouldn't I care?"

"Because I'm confused! Sometimes I think that we're just work partners, and you're asking for the sake of not wanting me to screw up the mission, but then when we kiss..."

Regina now understood. To be honest she'd been having the same thoughts. Emma cared for her more than her previous work partners - short-lived as they were - and she always thought it was the woman being charming down to a fault, to make up for her previous bungles. But then there were moments where it seemed like the touch of someone more intimate than just a work partner, or even a friend. More like a lover.

"I mean," Emma continued, she was prone to ramble when nervous, as Regina noticed, "am I just imagining things? Do you just kiss your fake girlfriends that deeply and often even when we're not being seen by anyone?"

"No, I don't. I...I truly care about you, Emma. More than I could have thought possible, especially from the woman who spilled scalding hot coffee on me on her first day on the force." - This got Emma to blush and smile - "But you are so much more than that. And getting to know you has shown me how much."

Next thing she knew, Emma was kissing her fervently, hands cupping her cheeks. It felt right for them, and Regina melted into the kiss, wrapping her arms around Emma's shoulders. When they parted, Emma chuckled. "I know I'm not the most eloquent person on the planet, but I really care about you too, Regina. Do you want to give this a shot? Be actual girlfriends?"

Regina merely grinned, and nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww look at the cute, hard-ass and stubborn detectives.
> 
> This is where this chapter ends! Also my knowledge of the Ritz Carlton over in Boston is merely from their website [which is surprisingly detailed, down to the type of lights they use] so if anyone has been in the Avery Room or the Avery bar [clearly they ran out of creative names at this point and had to name it after the street it's on] or even the Ritz-Carlton itself, and I'm way off base, my apologies.
> 
> So! next up from me will be a two new chapters of Such a Heavenly View [which won second place over at the SQFA and I am still shocked by it!], and then Flirting with Death!
> 
> I always love reading your reviews, so let me know your thoughts!


	9. Full House

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright ninth chapter!
> 
> I'm truly sorry for the delay, but I had a lot of things on my plate, and things were kinda hectic, but now I've got time to write. But, once more, this has become the new longest chapter!
> 
> So let's get started on this, shall we?

Emma was on cloud number nine. She had survived Gold's dinner, snagged Neal as resource, and the best part of the evening: she was now dating Regina Mills.

It made her feel so giddy to know that she could kiss Regina whenever she wanted now without feeling like she had to explain why she was doing so. And Regina didn't seem to mind at all. In fact, whenever Emma went to kiss her, she would chuckle and welcome the gesture.

"Sorry, your lips are kinda addicting," Emma sheepishly said as they parted. They were sitting on Regina's couch, once more with folders spread out around them. The party had ended a few hours ago and they needed to get their plan in action.

"I don't mind," Regina murmured, grinning. "But we really need to iron out a plan. We're wasting time."

So they got to work, drafting out a plan together.

"Okay so since we've got Neal," Regina began, twirling a pen in her fingers, "Our best bet is to try to set him up as being interested in taking over Gold's business, making him as the perfect probable suspect."

Emma nodded. "That'll be easy. What will be difficult is getting a manifest of shipments that we can use to hijack."

Regina gave a hum of agreement, poring over her notes. "Especially since I don't think he'd leave it lying around, even less so without any encryption. He must have countless shipments, and fake ones as well to throw anyone off his scent. We'd need to get his original files, and the key to reading them."

Thinking about it for a minute, Emma got an idea, and snapped her fingers. "Okay, I've got something. We need to get Gold out of the house. Once he's out, one of us can sneak inside and get everything."

Nodding slowly, Regina tried to think of any possible holes in their plan. "And Lacey?"

Shrugging, Emma said, "Ruby can take care of her. She gave Lacey her number, and as I understand it, they made contact. So, if we get them off on a date, the house will be free."

"Do you honestly think Gold will let Lacey leave for a date in the middle of the day?" Regina asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Sure; we know the guy's a romantic, he'll probably be ecstatic. Especially if he thinks it'll be beneficial to our partnership because she's going with one of ours."

Regina couldn't argue with that logic, but there was still another person they had to take care of. "What of Neal?"

Emma wasn't too bothered. "The guy probably won't be around. And even if he is, we can just use him, make him think it's part of the con."

Deep down, this plan worried Regina. She liked to take as little risk as possible, and have everything calculated to the last possible variable. This plan was a recipe for disaster. But they had to be efficient. They couldn't wait for the perfect opportunity to present itself. "Very well. How do we get Gold to go with us?"

That turned out to be an excellent question. Eventually, they managed to iron something out: Regina would spirit him away on the pretense of talking financials, and Emma would meanwhile snoop around and hopefully find something worthwhile that they could use.

Emma got in touch with Ruby, who was more than glad to take Lacey for a date - all for the cause, obviously - and they were ready to put their plan in action.

* * *

Much to Regina's chagrin, their plan did not end up starting without any hitches. As much as they had pegged Gold for his romance, Lacey had been extremely reluctant at asking for the afternoon off. But she did tell Ruby that she could visit her at the house if Gold wasn't around.

So they shifted their plan a bit, since they could still use it to their advantage. Regina called Gold, and he accepted to meet with her tomorrow afternoon. Soon enough, they got a call from Ruby saying that Lacey had given her the go-ahead to visit her tomorrow.

"See?" Emma said, giving Regina kiss on the cheek. "This'll work."

For Regina, this was the equivalent to 'what could go wrong?'. They were just asking for chance to take them on a wild ride.

But, she was determined to do her part perfectly, so she spent the whole night and the entire morning coming up with some financial reports that would show Gold that she had done plenty of thinking, and that it would be a lengthy conversation, giving Emma plenty of time to get in and out without being discovered.

Emma hadn't been too keen on being turned away for some reports, and as much as Regina would love to spend her time doing some delectable things with Emma, there was too much at stake for her; they couldn't afford to be sloppy.

The next morning, they were ready. Emma had dressed comfortably in clothes that were discreet - no red leather jacket, much to Regina's happiness - and allowed her to move with ease. She had dug out some equipment from her days as a pretend con artist placing them in a black leather satchel. While she waited for Regina to get out, she tried to get herself ready mentally. A lot was riding on her to be successful, so she had to be prepared for anything, and had to think fast, so no distractions or-

"Holy shit," Emma breathed. Regina was climbing down the stairs and to say she looked gorgeous would be an understatement. So much for no distractions. But in Emma's defense, Regina was absolutely breathtaking in her business dress, a little black number that was probably not adequate for work. It had buttons running throughout the front, making it look like a cross between a dress and a suit jacket, though it had very small sleeves. She had completed the look with dark black stockings and knee-high black heeled boots. In short, she looked she could walk all over Emma, and Emma would even thank her for it.

"I'm guessing you like it?" Regina asked with a smirk. She kept this for special occasions, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity for it. Getting to see Emma's reaction was an added bonus that she was very much enjoying.

Emma nodded dumbly. "Yeah...wow."

Taking advantage of the fact that she had yet to apply lipstick, she leaned down and claimed Emma's lips in a sweet kiss. Emma returned the kiss with vigour, cradling Regina's cheeks in her hands. "Hmm, I could get used to this," she murmured as they parted.

Regina chuckled. "The dress, or kissing me?"

Humming, she responded, "Both. Though I do wish I got to see it more often..."

"Maybe I'll let you remove it once we get back," Regina coyly added with a wink.

Emma felt her mouth dry up.

Confident that she left Emma with the desired effect, she walked towards her purse to grab her lipstick. Once she was finished, she felt ready.

* * *

They went their separate ways, Regina to the Lair, while Emma went to Gold's, where she would meet Ruby. They were going to take advantage of Lacey's instructions on how to get in unawares to sneak them both inside and avoid Gold's numerous cameras.

"Hey," Emma said, crouching beside Ruby, who had been looking intently at Gold's place.

Apparently a little bit too intently as her presence caused Ruby to jump up in surprise and exclaim,"Geez Em! Give a woman a little bit of a warning next time, will you?"

Emma scoffed. "Not my fault you're wracked with nerves at your pseudo date with Lacey. Speaking of which, nice dress."

Ruby beamed at the compliment. Although she was sensibly wearing a jacket this time, Emma saw the burgundy dress peeking out under the jacket and found the colour fitting. "I'll have you know that I'm not nervous at all about my date, I'm just being strategic...to help you of course."

"Right," Emma drawled. Regina sent her a text to let her know that Gold had arrived which meant it was showtime for them. "Come on, let's go."

They moved their way closer to the property, and searched for the weak area of undergrowth that would allow them to slip inside. Once they found it, they made their way closer to the industrial loft, using a service entrance left unlocked. Once inside, they parted ways, Emma heading upstairs, and Ruby heading to the kitchen.

Approaching her destination, Ruby felt her nerves - that she had vehemently denied having - doubled once she saw Lacey sitting on a stool, reading. Once she looked up and saw her, Lacey beckoned her over and patted the stool next to her.

Ruby gulped and slowly made her way over. "Hey you," she greeted with a smile.

"Hey yourself," Lacey chuckled. "D'you want something to drink? I know this isn't ideal for a first date, but since you insisted on today..."

Feigning bravado, Ruby shrugged her shoulders gently. "I just wanted to get to know you, no fanciness. We can do a dinner next time."

"'Next time'?" Lacey repeated with a chuckle. "Someone's very confident."

"Well you know, I'm a ladies' magnet," Ruby responded, wagging her eyebrows.

This got Lacey to chortle adorably, and Ruby beamed. This was going well.

* * *

Emma however, wasn't having much luck. She had found Gold's office easily enough, but finding the shipping manifests was another matter entirely. She had tried to go for the drawers, thinking that he wouldn't leave everything out in the open, but none of them held what she was looking for. Feeling around the dark mahogany of the desk, she felt around for any indentations where a key could be inserted to open secret compartments for more sensitive materials. As she crouched underneath the desk, she found one, and got her lock-picking kit out.

Just as she started to clear the last stage, the door to the office opened.

"It's probably nothing." Her heart sunk. Neal. "You know his system's kinda glitchy."

"You'll forgive me if I want to be thorough. Your father's not exactly a forgiving man who will understand overlooking something." A woman with an English accent. It sounded like Gold's assistant, Zelena.

It was then that Emma realized that she must've tripped a silent alarm, and she cursed her thoughtlessness.

"Yeah yeah, if you want, I'll check it over the nooks and crannies," Neal said, clearly not amused at having been interrupted in whatever he was doing.

It seemed Zelena seemed satisfied to see there was no one inside from what she could immediately discern. Emma heard heels clack away, and she heard a door close. Dull thumps alerted her that Neal was still there with her, and Emma was very glad for the wood panelling she was hiding behind reached the ground, surrounding her in shadow.

Next thing she knew, Neal was pulling the desk chair away and grinning at her. "Gotcha."

Emma startled and froze, unsure what to do.

Seeming to understand, Neal straightened and backed away. "Come on out. I won't turn you over to Zelena, promise."

Although she wasn't particularly enjoying having to deal with Neal, she counted herself lucky that it was only him and not someone else that would out her without a moment of hesitation. Deciding that she could use his knowledge to make her process quicker, she got out of there and said, "Thanks. For a hot minute, I thought I was done for. How did you know I was here?"

"He never leaves the chair so sloppily." Neal chuckled, patting the back of the seat. "What are you even doing here?"

"Recon. You wouldn't know where I could find shipping manifests, right?" Emma asked, flashing a disarming smile.

"I suppose so..." But rather than give the information up right away, he asked, "Why?"

Emma leveled him with a glare. "Why do you think, genius?"

She could practically see him connecting the dots in his head. Once he discerned what she was doing, he gave her an impressed look. "Gutsy. But you won't find it here. Zelena's in charge of all of that."

Groaning, she internally cursed herself. Of course this wouldn't be easy.

"Come on, I'll distract her and you can look for the files," Neal said, beckoning her to follow him.

Deciding that the smart idea would be to go along with him for now, she fell into step behind him, heading back out of the office. The upstairs floor of the industrial loft was built much more traditionally, with wood panelling and carpeted hallways, so as they made their way to Zelena's office, they didn't make a sound.

But when a resounding bang was hear as a door slammed open, they froze, panicked. Looking around wildly, Neal opened the nearest open door and thrust Emma inside, closing the door behind him before she could even utter one syllable edgewise.

Moving closer to the door, she heard Neal say, "Hey, I was just coming by to let you know that the office's clear."

Zelena didn't seem to be too interested as she ground out, "Yes yes, I'm sure. What I am interested in is finding out what the hell Lacey is up to. I've paged her  _three times_  now for my tea and she's ignored every one of my calls!"

In a tone that sounded so fake that Emma cringed, Neal said, "Excellent idea. How about we both go search for Lacey? I've been feeling a bit parched myself."

"Fine, let's go then."

Either Zelena was particularly dumb, or she was needing that tea somewhat desperately, because there was no way anyone with a brain would've believed Neal. Deciding to not question her luck, she waited until the steps receded, and she peeked out. Zelena's office door was still ajar, so she quickly crossed the hallway and went inside.

She froze as she saw that the office was impeccable. Not a sheet was out of place. While it would be easier to find what she was looking for, Emma would be hard pressed to do anything and maintain the position it was originally in. And what was worse, Zelena would probably realize if anything was amiss. Before she dived into her search, and as a final precaution, she sent a message to Ruby, alerting that her date was about to be rudely interrupted.

* * *

Meanwhile Regina wanted to tear her eyes out. Having to stall by dragging out financial conversation were not her forte, though she was managing thus far quite decently. However her brain was insistently pleading mercy and reprieve.

Right now, he was inspecting a document that they had drafted together, wire-rimmed glasses perched on the edge of his nose, chin resting on his hand, stroking the fine hairs on his jaw.

After a sharp intake of breath as he shook his head, he put the paper down as he moved to remove his glasses. "Alas, I cannot give you a definitive answer without taking a look at my books. If you want, we can head there now-"

"Oh it's quite alright," Regina said, waving it off. "We can do it tomorrow."

"Nonsense. It's a good point you've brought up, and I'd rather not delay any further. Unless there is some pressing matter that you must take care of that prevents you from coming now?" he asked, eyes piercing.

She shook her head. There was no way to give a convincing answer that sounded plausible. She hadn't been in no hurry before, so why would she be now?

"Then, shall we?"

"Certainly. I'm just going to let the girls know I'm leaving, and I'll meet you outside."

He nodded and they gathered their papers, before parting ways, Regina going to text Emma.

_Regina: How close are you to being done?_

_Emma: Not too close, why?_

Although she was thankful for the quick response, she wasn't too happy with the answer.

_Regina: Our plan might have worked too well, he wants us to look over some figures in his office. We're going there NOW_

_Emma: Shit._

_Emma: Well I'm not in his office right now, so maybe I can just hide until you two leave?_

_Regina: Where the hell are you then?_

_Emma: Long story, but Zelena's office._

_Emma: Lady is meticulous with her organizing._

Regina cursed.

_Emma: Not sure how Ruby's faring either. Last I heard, Zelena was going to chase Lacey down for ignoring her calls for tea._

Regina doubly cursed.

_Regina: Never mind that, just try to get out of there as soon as you can._

_Emma: Roger._

* * *

Right then, Ruby was wishing she had looked at her phone a bit earlier. Maybe then she would've had time to hide in a more comfortable place than under the kitchen sink, being squeezed between the trash compactor and the water pipes, smelling the industrial quantities of cleaning products stored there.

As it was, she managed to send a curt message to Emma. Her position didn't really allow for detailed messages, but she hoped that Emma would get her.

_Ruby: Thx 4 heads up, bt in vain. Hiding under the sink hbu?_

_Emma: Not much better. Hang in there._

_Emma: Oh and Regina's coming over too._

Ruby decided that she wasn't even going to ask. At least the date had been going well until they heard heels clack down the steps, leading Lacey to practically drag her to her current hiding spot. If Ruby was honest, she wouldn't have pegged her date as super strong, but she was proved wrong.

"Honestly, is it that hard to answer one call for tea?" a woman was asking, sounding pretty miffed about the situation.

"I'm really sorry Zelena, I must've gotten distracted," Lacey apologetically said. Her broken tone made Ruby itch to go out there and give that Zelena woman a lesson or two, after hugging Lacey.

She could practically hear the eye-roll in the response. "Of course,  _the bookworm_  was distracted reading yet another book. We pay you to do what we ask, not to dawdle."

Maybe she would also take the teacup and shove it up hers for good measure.

* * *

Emma had finally found the cabinet with the shipment logs, but as she had imagined, they were quite coded, and without a key or knowing how to look, it was pointless.

Deciding that her best bet would be to figure it out elsewhere, Emma grabbed the newest folder, opened Zelena's computer, and prepared to make scans of the documents.

Unfortunately, Zelena's printer wasn't exactly quiet. Willing the machinery to work faster, she groaned when her phone alerted her to a new message from Regina

_We're here._

* * *

As Regina got out of the car, she kept her eyes peeled for Emma and Ruby, hoping to distract Gold if needed.

She was sure she was going to faint when she saw none other than Neal and Zelena when the door opened.

Gold seemed surprised to see them too. "And what are you two doing downstairs?"

Zelena rolled her eyes as she answered. "I had to chase down Lacey for my tea. Apparently the bookworm was riveted with her newest paperback. And this one" - she jerked her thumb to Neal - "is acting shifty, insisting on my taking a longer break."

"It's good for you," Neal vainly added. In Regina's opinion, he didn't sound too convincing. If that was as good as his lying game got, it was a surprise he hadn't been arrested yet. Then again, an influential father could help him there.

"Well, no matter," Gold dismissively said. "We won't keep you, Zelena."

Remembering where Emma was, Regina rushed to jump in. "Actually, perhaps Zelena could help us? Another pair of eyes might help."

Gold considered the suggestion, and Zelena looked nearly apoplectic at being dragged to what clearly didn't sound interesting.

"That sounds like a wise idea actually," Gold agreed. "Would you join us, Zelena?"

Plastering a vibrant yet clearly fake smile, Zelena nodded. "Of course, lead the way!"

* * *

Emma heard voices trailing down the hall, and heard Regina's with them. She was out of time.

But alas, just when she needed the printer to work faster, it decided to riot, and started blaring an alarm, flashing a message on the display.

" _Shit_ ," she harshly whispered. The sound was making it hard to focus on what the problem was, or how to stop it.

A paper jam. The printer was having a crisis loud enough to give her a heart attack over a paper getting stuck. Just her luck. She tried to bang the printer open so she could remove the offending paper, and it could stop making all the noise, but it decided that it had to finish wailing its piece before it would allow her to do anything.

Her heart dropped when she heard, "What the bloody hell is that ruckus?"

Zelena had heard, shit. And this office left no place for her to hide. Thinking quick, she stuffed all the papers - the guilty crumpled paper that she was able to remove as well - into her satchel. She turned to the window, and opened it, finding a ledge below that she could hang out of. It would probably also be useful as her escape route.

* * *

Regina was certain that her heart was in her throat. When she heard a loud blaring noise from a few rooms down, she stopped breathing for a few seconds. Unfortunately for her, everyone else had heard it, and were looking at each other in confusion.

Then there was some clanking, and Regina was convinced that Emma was doing everything possible to get them caught.

After Zelena asked her question, Neal offered, "Maybe a squirrel got into your office?"

Hearing that, all that Regina hoped was that she would be able to make it through today with her sanity intact.

Letting out a growl of frustration, Zelena didn't even deign him with an answer, instead just stalked over to her office, Regina and Gold trailing behind her.

She was extremely surprised to see that the room was empty. There didn't seem to be too many places for Emma to hide, and nothing looked out of place to suggest she was there. She could now understand Emma's message on Zelena being meticulous.

"Peculiar," Zelena frowned, walking around her room, looking everywhere she she could.

"Is something amiss?" Gold asked.

Shaking her head, Zelena said, "No, that's what's worrying."

Gold gave a small hum and then turned back to the doorway. "Perhaps we should return to our business then?"

"Certainly," Regina agreed, wanting to get out of here.

Outside, Emma was slowly losing her grip, and she could've cried with relief when she heard the door close. She reopened the window, having closed it behind her, lest she wanted Zelena to notice it. But she still left a sliver open so she could open it again, so she did just that, and slipped back inside, finishing her work. Thankfully everything went perfectly now. After she was done, it was time to return everything to how it was. deciding to be smart, she switched the crumpled page for the photocopy, deciding that Zelena should keep the new version, since it would be smooth, and not draw attention should she decide to peruse.

As she was shuffling all the papers back neatly, she saw that on the inside cover of the manila folder, there were numbers written neatly. Taking her phone, she took a picture of the string of digits, certain that was the key she needed to have the manifest make sense.

After making sure that everything was in place, she left through the window, closing it definitively before climbing down. Sending a quick text to Ruby, notifying her that she was heading her way; she made her way to the kitchen, making sure to avoid all the cameras. Once she was there, she saw that Ruby was currently preoccupied with kissing Lacey, and Emma decided to leave the two lovebirds be. So she followed the instructions she had taken earlier to enter the property, but this time in reverse to get out. Once she was in the clear, she went to wait by her and Ruby's car.

Mission accomplished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all for now folks! Things are going to get very intense as you can tell! Will their plan work? Who knows?
> 
> Well, I do, but semantics! Also that was the printer from hell, huh? Zelena should think about upgrading.
> 
> For those curious, Regina's dress is the one from the ep Lacey.
> 
> Question: yay or nay to upping the rating and including sexytimes?
> 
> As always, your reviews make my day, so I'd love to hear them!
> 
> Meanwhile, I'll be updating a new one shot: Rewriting, then back to my regular Such a Heavenly View, and Flirting with Death!


	10. Lucky Nights, Unlucky Days

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello wonderful readers!
> 
> Loved the enthusiasm for the rating change, so as you might've been able to tell, I have complied! I hope I did it justice.
> 
> And everyone's reactions to the craziness of last chapter were excellently entertaining, I'm super happy everyone enjoyed the hijinks!
> 
> Now for more.

When Emma heard the door open, she turned to the entrance and saw Regina sauntering in, a sigh escaping her lips as they made eye contact and saw she was alright. Emma rushed forward to take Regina into her arms and kiss her soundly before the door had fully closed; their lips moved in tandem and Emma let out a wanton moan at the feeling. She was addicted to Regina's lips.

She knew that Regina had been gearing up to chastise her for her recklessness that almost got them caught, but Emma still had adrenaline thrumming through her veins and that dress looked sinful, it just had to go. So she pinned her against the door and continued kissing her, hips grinding into Regina's slowly.

Regina quickly forgot what she was going to say as Emma's lips overwhelmed her brain to the point where she could think of nothing more than the way their bodies touched, and Emma's hips pressed against her core. It was intoxicating, and she needed more. Her hands moved to Emma's chest, palms running towards her shoulders underneath the black leather jacket, pushing it away, and Emma moved so she was no longer holding Regina and the jacket could slide down her arms and onto the floor.

Next came Emma's shirt, and once it was gone, the latter latched her mouth onto Regina's neck, and then peppered kisses in the vicinity as her hands reached down to unbutton the front of Regina's dress. Once it was open, Emma grabbed the lapels and began leading them to the bed, now back to kissing her on the lips. It was messy but oh so fulfilling.

When the back of Emma's legs collided with the bed, she was going to turn them so Regina would fall beneath her, but apparently, her partner had other ideas. She quickly took over, stopping Emma's movements before pushing her down onto the bed and climbing on top of her. The open dress and lacy bra did wonders to Emma's arousal, and she began to sit up to get rid of them, but a firm hand on her chest prevented her from continuing. Her back collided with the mattress and she could only look at her girlfriend in adoration. Though right then it was probably mostly lust.

Regina's smirk and sensual sway of her hips gave Emma quite an idea of what was happening, and she gleefully watched as Regina finished taking off her dress slowly, chucking it to the floor before she leaned forward to place her arms on either side of Emma's head and kiss her. The kiss quickly deepened and their tongues slid against one another as Regina reached around to unclasp her bra first, and then Emma's, balling both up before throwing them to the side.

Emma still had her pants on, so Regina began to kiss down her lover's body. Soft, supple lips barely brushed the skin of her shoulders, her breasts, and down her chest to her hips, just where the hem of her dark wash jeans rested. She quickly undid the button and the zipper, and then moved so she could slide them down and away, along with her panties. She used the opportunity to get rid of her own underwear, and now that they were both naked, the real fun could begin.

Regina heard Emma's breathless moans as she ran her fingers through flushed skin, and she had to lean forward to whisper in Emma's ear, "You look so beautiful, and oh the things I want to do to you."

"No complaints here," Emma responded with bravado as she went to grab Regina's hips. But Regina stopped the hands by holding onto Emma's wrists, and pulling them above her head.

"Keep them there," Regina ordered coyly.

"But-" Emma began to protest.

Regina rolled her eyes. "No buts, unless you want me to bring out the handcuffs."

"Kinky." Emma's eyebrow wag made Regina scoff and she was tempted to make good on her threat if only to shut her up.

"Maybe next time," Regina said, before she kissed Emma again. She straddled Emma's right thigh and rubbed herself against Emma's flushed skin. Her lips moved to Emma's breasts, kissing one and then the other softly before her tongue swirled at the tip. Meanwhile, her right hand sneaked down between Emma's folds and swiped along the length with two fingers, already so slick. She sat up and brought the fingers to her mouth and sucked them clean, much to Emma's amazement.

"Fuck..." she muttered, gaping.

"I will," Regina winked, and then brought her fingers back down to tease Emma's clit, and her lips sought out Emma's pulse point and latched on to it. Emma squirmed under her touch, her moans fueling Regina to move her fingers to Emma's entrance.

Emma's hips bucked, and she moaned, "Regina please..."

"Please what, Emma?" Regina loved to tease her lover. The desperation in her voice was asking for it.

"Fuck me now."

And Regina did. Her fingers began to slide in an out of Emma in a steady pace, getting both of them even more aroused, before Regina picked up speed, her own hips bucking at a similar pace. Emma was in heaven, the overwhelming sensation of Regina fucking her and feeling her juices trailing down her leg as she rubbed herself just had her moaning and whispering Regina's name breathlessly. She never wanted it to stop, but when Regina's fingers began curling inside of her, she felt herself come closer and closer to an orgasm. As a thumb pressed down to her clit, she let out a cry. "Fuck, Regina..."

"Are you close, Em-ma?" The way she said her name would alone have made her come, breathy and separated syllables, and Emma groaned at it. "Come for me."

And she did. She clutched at the pillow and her back arched off of the bed and her moans filled the room. Regina didn't let up, kissing her shoulder and nipping the skin there as her fingers continued moving inside her at a fast pace.

As she caught her breath again, Regina slowed her fingers and the movement turned more leisurely.

But Emma wasn't done yet. "My turn."

* * *

After their post-coital nap, Emma and Regina got to work, deciphering the manifest that Emma had gotten started with before she had gotten distracted with Regina's arrival. Now that they had their starting point, they could put their plan in motion.

The new shipment was coming in on Saturday, and they had to get everything ready. For this to work there had to be no doubt that Neal was itching to take his old man's place.

"And thankfully, I have just the idea. Apparently Gold loves a chance to throw a party, and he suggested it as I left earlier. I'll just call to arrange one, and then we have to get the prodigal son drunk enough."

Emma smirked. "That won't be hard. So we get him drunk, he does his piece, and then we get the authorities to storm his shipment, before we continue onto phase two. There's no way he can survive this."

And so they got their pieces lined up. Regina managed to snag a party the day after tomorrow, just one day before the shipment was to arrive. It was being held at Gold's mansion, far away from his industrial loft. Clearly the mansion had no danger of someone perhaps slipping away and gaining sensitive information. Nonetheless, neither woman really cared where it was held, just that Neal was there.

And he was. It wasn't hard to get him into a drunken rage, he was already halfway there. Emma offered to be his drinking partner, pretending to knock back a few shots as Neal actually downed everything placed in front of him. Clearly he was stressed.

"So, your dad can throw a good party," Emma began, once she was sure he was hammered enough.

Neal groaned. "Are you kidding me? This asshole would lay down all of this money for others because he wants to impress them. That's all he cares about, his money and others, all so long as he has a shining reputation. Selfish prick. You know he's just an absolute asshole. He doesn't know how to run jack."

Knowing that Neal wouldn't remember this in the morning, she innocently added, "You think you would be able to run this whole shindig better than him?"

"Of fucking course I would. He's just a pawnshop owner who got lucky. He doesn't have the street smarts. He's old and washed up and in today's world, you need someone who's in the know. And you wanna know what? I bet that the minute things go south, all these people here that are lavishing him with false platitudes would drop him faster than a hot potato." Neal's words were slurring a bit, but the message was clear, now he just needed one more push.

Emma nodded. "You've got a point, you should tell him that now."

Neal seemed to agree, and slammed his hands down on the table, using it to get up on shaky legs and stumble over to where his father was. Emma slipped away to stand with Regina at a side.

"Now watch," Emma said and nodded to where Neal was getting ready to proclaim his stand on things.

And he delivered. It was quite a passionate discourse. By the end of it, he had everyone hanging onto his words. Emma had wondered if maybe not having a microphone his drunken words would fall on deaf ears, but she needn't have worried. "You're all idiots for sticking with this rotten piece of garbage! He's a mess! He doesn't know how to lead shit, that's why he's got so many lackeys following him around! He's a fake! He killed to get to this position, and just knows how to undermine people! You trust him now. Just watch how quickly things will fall apart the minute things don't go his way."

By this point, it was clear Gold had gotten a few of his guards to escort his son elsewhere. But not before Neal managed to have the final word. "You will all see! I will prove it to you!"

Regina and Emma smirked at one another, and together they walked out, where the former began to make a call.

* * *

Gold was livid. He was sure that if he were stronger, he would have snapped his cellphone in half by now. As if last night hadn't been enough, with his son causing a ruckus in the middle of the party and saying all that ridiculous drunk nonsense that could destroy months, if not years, of hard work, now he had the aftermath to contend with.

He thought that sending his son home to sleep it off would be a good idea and then he could properly scold him today, as well as assure his partners that his son had just been babbling nonsense; it would be enough, and yet, he had just received a call saying that his latest shipment had been flagged by the authorities, and absolutely everything was being seized for inspection. Sure he could get away with plausible deniability, but this was a large dent on his operation.

"Lacey!" he called out. Not one minute later, his meek maid appeared.

She cowered a bit at his composure, and he internally patted himself on the back for at the very least, still being able to make others fear him. "Yes, Mr. Gold?"

"Get Zelena here as soon as you can. And then track down my son. I need to have some words with him."

Lacey nodded and excused herself without another word. He knew that his cargo being searched by the authorities was no mere coincidence. And he supposed he could consider other suspects for this, but after what his son said last night, there was little doubt as to who had done this.

"You asked for me?" Zelena walked in, commanding the room as she was wont to do with just her presence.

Gold gestured to the seat in front of his desk. "I'm sure you heard our shipment was seized."

"Yes, an unfortunate matter, except as I went to check the papers, I realized this." She slammed a piece of paper onto the desk that Gold hadn't seen her carrying in. It was a coded manifest of the cargo, undecipherable without the key.

"What am I supposed to see here?" Gold saw nothing amiss.

"This is a copy. The original is missing! Someone sneaked into my office and made a copy!" Zelena's voice was shrill, her eyes growing wild.

Before Gold could find an answer to it, certain it must've been his son's sloppy handiwork, Lacey returned. "I'm very sorry Mr. Gold, your son seems to be missing."

"Missing? Whatever do you mean?!" Gold thundered.

"Apparently, I tried to contact him directly, but it said the number was no longer in service, and the detail you sent to keep an eye on him have been trying to find him all morning, unsuccessfully so."

Incompetent fools. Of course his son would run. "Very well. Send in the Alpha team to dispose of the detail and to get me answers!"

Lacey nodded, but didn't leave. He sighed. "Is there _anything_ else?"

"Yes. The phones have been ringing off the hook. Everyone's calling, asking for answers. Your partners and suppliers don't sound very happy. I've had death threats."

"Well that comes with the business," Zelena quipped, clearly reveling at the action she was witnessing. Considering what the movies painted it, she probably had been expecting more exciting, like clandestine operations with lots of action and deception. Well, she was now getting her money's worth.

Gold had to get things under control. Clearly his son had been trying to find the weak link, and he had found it. Now his entire operation was surely tumbling down before his eyes. "I'll man the phones now, so forward them here."

* * *

Emma and Regina were staring at the TV, engrossed as they saw that the bust made national news. This was better than they could have expected.

"Oh man, I would pay to see Gold right now," Emma smirked.

Regina chuckled. "You and me both. I suppose for appearance's sake, I better make a call as a concerned partner."

As Emma settled back, content with letting her girlfriend take care of business, she was startled as her phone buzzed. She saw it was Ruby and greeted the call cheerfully. "Here to congratulate me on-"

"Emma, listen to me," Ruby interjected seriously, and Emma immediately sobered.

"Ruby? What is it?"

"You and Regina are in danger. We just got a BOLO for you guys, and you're listed as rogue officers. I used my resources to investigate and get more info. You have maybe 10 minutes before officers are coming to Regina's and arrest you both."

Emma blanched. "And Henry?"

"He'll be safe, don't worry. Just get your stuff and go!" Ruby's voice spoke of an urgency she had never heard of before.

"Why are you helping us? Do you think it was foul play?" Emma bolted to her room to grab her bag, stuffing as many clothes she could. She put the phone down on the bed and on speaker as she packed.

"I'm your friend and your partner for many years Swan. I think I would sooner become a rogue cop than you."

Regina appeared at the door, looking puzzled. "Emma? What's wrong?"

"We're on the run. Grab your stuff, I'll explain on the way," Emma hurriedly said, listening to Ruby.

"You two are trying to bring down a mafia kingpin and _just_ as you make your coup starting against him, you're outlaws? This smells like a set up."

Regina frowned as she worked diligently with her own things. "Strange. I just spoke with Gold and he didn't seem at all suspicious. I'm certain I would've noted if he was onto us."

"Then there's someone who knows about your mission on the force and is very invested in seeing it go up in flames. Two birds with one stone really," Ruby noted. It sounded plausible. Someone could start Gold's empire's downfall while also getting rid of both Emma and Regina. The problem was who.

Emma was nearly done and they needed to get out of here. "Ruby, take care of Henry and Mary Margaret for me, okay? I'll get a burner phone to keep in touch."

"You know it. Go! They're on route to Regina's."

Before she hung up, she asked, "Are the ladies on our side?"

"Yep. Now go!" Perfect, then she knew just where they could hide out. She hung up and they both got their stuff ready, essentials only, and left the apartment, disposing of their phones before heading for the subway. Emma donned a baseball cap and Regina raised her jacket's hood up, sunglasses on. Now, to disappear.

* * *

"So, I just got a very interesting call," Zelena started as she waltzed into the room, and Gold grimaced, taking the opportunity to knock back some more whiskey from his tumbler. Her tone didn't bode anything good for him.

"As if I needed more bad news." He had sent out an enforcer to find and deal with his son, teach him a lesson but not kill, and his reputation was coming down in flames. What else could happen?

Zelena smirked and splayed her hands on the desk, leaning forward. "I think you'll like this bit. The darling Emma White and Regina Queen are actually prolific Boston PD detectives undercover to bring you down."

Gold's demeanour changed automatically. His haggard face suddenly sported a wide and determined smirk. "Well, this changes things..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter!
> 
> I left it at quite the cliffhanger huh? Who do you think is behind this new nefarious plan against Emma and Regina?
> 
> Although the holidays are over, I did promise to do a double update for all of my stories, so another chapter will be coming soon! So thankfully for you guys, you won't have to wait long to see where this leaves our favourite ladies.
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed this!


	11. Getting Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, soon is usually a relative term [though probably not meant to be "four months later"] but I admit that I've been busy and won't bore you with the details.
> 
> Now, if you'll recall, our ladies are on the run! I had some very interesting theories as to who it might be that put them in this situation, let's see if we can't find out who it actually is.

"Where are we going?" Regina asked, keeping her head down as they took the subway to their destination. They were standing near the door just in case they spotted trouble, Regina against the wall and Emma facing her, acting as a cover with her arms on either side of Regina.

With a hushed voice, Emma said, "The Lair."

Regina recalled Emma asking about the ladies, this must be what she was inquiring about. "Isn't that the most obvious place?"

Emma smirked. "Exactly. It also has a state of the art security system and it has plenty of secret spots to hide in. The women that were working with us on our little caper won't rat us out, they can tell something is fishy too. We can use that as our base and figure out what's going on and who's targeting us without worrying about staying hidden."

They got off a few stops later, and walked the rest of the way, heads down and sticking together. They only made one stop to stock up on food and to get a prepaid cellphone, paying with cash and making sure to stay out of the camera's view.

Once they turned the corner and went down the alley, they relaxed a little bit. They were almost there. Emma grabbed her key and opened the door for them, shutting it behind them as they let out a sigh. They made it.

Regina went down the stairs ahead in order to get their security measures going as she had studied the system while Emma had been decorating, so she knew the ins-and-outs of the Lair.

Meanwhile, Emma made sure all the entrances were locked. While it would be easy for someone to just knock the door down, they could at least slow them down. A well-placed 2x4 and a chair propped just right would surely do the trick. After securing all the entrances and exits, Emma went to meet Regina by the kitchen.

She found her partner putting everything they bought in pantries. "I'm hiding everything so that it looks like they were just props left over, just in case someone comes knocking. I'm still not convinced that this is the best place to hide."

Emma shrugged. "I don't have any other hideouts. It's either this or some seedy motel, and I like our chances here. Plus, more private and no one can recognize us."

Regina had to agree. "So when are we going to talk to Ruby?"

"Maybe in an hour or so. Surely right now everyone's all hands on deck, not to mention she might be questioned as a member of our operation. Ruby won't be much help to us if they lock her up."

"Fair enough. How do you know the other women won't sell us out?" Regina asked. She didn't consider herself paranoid, just cautious by nature, and it wasn't so far out of the realm of possibility that there could one of them who would sell them out rather than put her neck on the line.

Emma smirked. "How do you think I got all of them to agree to take part of this thing in the first place?"

"I had assumed friendship...did you blackmail them?"

"Bla- no! I'm not that evil!" Emma spluttered.

Regina shrugged. She wouldn't have been that opposed to the idea. "Bribing?"

"Not exactly. We're all part of a poker group. They all owe me money, and I promised I'd square it with everyone if they participated and kept quiet."

"Perfect, so if someone does spill, they will say you told them to keep it quiet," Regina sighed.

"They wouldn't do that. It was just an additional incentive that they'll adhere to unless they want to become a snitch," Emma countered.

Regina made a face. "Social manipulation, huh. You're quite devious, Swan."

Emma groaned. "Must you twist my words, _Mills_? You make it seem like I'm terrorizing my friends and coworkers to do my bidding."

Regina wanted nothing more than to continue the banter as if nothing was wrong, but they had to figure out their next move. "We can talk about your nefarious proclivities later. Right now, we have to plan."

And so they did. They thought of all the people who could have done this, who knew enough, and who had the most to gain. By the time they called Ruby, they had a list of suspects.

"Man, you guys disappear like pros," Ruby greeted. "Graham had us comb the entire city and we couldn't find a shred of you."

"Well it's expected since we're cops... wait. Graham thinks we're guilty?" Emma asked, sounding a bit hurt. She had figured her old boss would know her better by now.

"No, but the higher ups are having everyone take the city apart, affiliations and beliefs be damned," Ruby explained.

Regina jumped in at that. "Any specific higher ups?"

"Well your boss is at the height of his madness trying to find you two, did you two insult him or something?"

James Nolan, they figured he had something to do with this. "He hates me, but that's nothing new," Regina responded.

"I guess I'm just collateral damage then?" Emma ventured. "We need more info, who can we reach out for info, and that we can trust?"

Ruby hummed as she thought. "That might be a bit hard to come by. I mean, Sidney might have your answers, but you two better be careful, we all know he's a weasel, so he might try to extort you to give you info. Or he might sell you out."

Regina got a wicked smirk on her face that made Emma slightly scared and a little bit turned on, if she had to be honest. "Oh I wouldn't worry about that."

Figuring Regina had a plan, Emma decided to end the call for now. It was best to not stay in touch long in case anyone was listening. "Thanks for your help Ruby, keep us updated will you?"

"Shall do. Stay safe you two, there's patrols everywhere."

They promised they would, and after they hung up, Regina shared her plan. They would attack tomorrow.

* * *

"So boss, what's the plan? We strike the BPD?" Zelena asked, watching as Gold sat behind his desk, elbows resting against the wood surface, fingers templed against his chin. He looked like a veritable villain, plotting some nefarious plan.

But it seemed he had more important priorities, Zelena thought with a scornful sneer as Gold first asked, "Any news on my son?"

"None," _since the last time you asked, which was ten minutes ago you wrinkled prune_ , she added savagely in her mind. But she wouldn't be under his thumb for much longer, and that made her hold her tongue.

"Very well, the plan. We can't exactly storm the Boston PD quite yet, we don't have sufficient proof to slap them with a lawsuit, and I very much would like to do so; this little fiasco has put us back months in our operations, if not years, it's good you got this info when you did, as they could have done a lot more damage. Nonetheless, striking now would lead to an unfortunate scenario and many questions will be asked. No, we must strike smartly. We get confessions from them, by any means necessary, and then we strike Boston's Finest."

Sitting down, Zelena was intrigued. "And how do you propose we get the two?"

"We don't know their home address, and I'm sure we won't find it, but there is a place we do know. Their hideout," Gold smirked.

Zelena frowned. "You don't seriously think they would be that stupid to go there do you?"

"Why yes, they would go there. The most obvious place is one that many would overlook. Now, gather our top enforcers. We'll need all the firepower to attack tomorrow morning."

* * *

Sidney Glass was a man of habits and schedules. If something worked for him, he stuck to it, for he didn't really like chaos and uncertainty.

And so, like any other day, he would get a cab from his apartment, and take it to work. Just his luck, a cab was waiting for him, and he jumped into the backseat before anyone could grab it. "Boston PD Headquarters at the Schroeder Plaza," he gratefully said as he settled into his seat. Alas, his sense of calm prevented him from taking full stock of his surroundings.

It was only after the car peeled off the curb that he realized he wasn't sitting alone. "Good morning Sidney."

The shrill scream he let out was not one of his proudest moments. Then again, he did just see Regina Mills smirking beside him. "Stop the car!"

"No can do pal, you have some questions to answer." His heart sunk as he saw the driver, Emma Swan. He tried to force the door open but Emma had been smart and locked it. Not that he would've been too comfortable to roll out of the car. Emma was driving like a maniac and was probably breaking a few speed rules.

"Now Sidney, you'll answer some questions for us," Regina said, appearing unfazed with their speed.

"Sure, sure, whatever you want, just please don't kill me," he pleaded.

"We're not going to kill you," Emma scoffed, turning to face him. "We're somehow magically fugitives from the law; do you really think we'd use this as a springboard to a life of crime?"

"Then face forward!" he yelped, his voice cracking. No one could ever hear about this.

"Oh relax, this is Boston, now answer Regina's questions," Emma said, thankfully going back to driving.

He nodded quickly at the woman beside him, and she began with the most crucial question, knowing there was no use beating around the bush. "Who set us up? And don't think to play games with us, otherwise I will truly have Emma drive like a maniac."

As if to prove her point, Emma took a sharp right turn, wheels squealing and horns honking outside. Sidney once again let out a scream.

"Wow man, you should join a choir as a soprano or an alto," Emma snickered.

"Would you just drive?!" he exclaimed. Then he regained his composure and turned to Regina, who was waiting expectantly for an answer. "I think James is behind all of this."

"James? What's the proof?" Regina asked. While it wasn't out of the realm of possibility - after all, he was one of their prime suspects - she wanted to be armed with the most amount of knowledge. This was a single opportunity to get information, and they had to do this right.

"He- he started demanding for your heads out of nowhere. He ordered the BOLO and claimed you two went rogue, saying he had never sanctioned such a mission to take down Gold's mafia. He won't hear any kind of counter-argument, claiming we should capture you guys, but that at the same time, you are armed and dangerous so if it came to a shootout and you guys died or something, it wouldn't be the end of the world."

"So he wants us dead?! Why?" Emma spluttered.

"Hell if I know."

Regina huffed. "Oh you will know. You will find out absolutely everything that James has by tonight and-"

"I can't. He's in some meeting today. He's not even going to be in the office," Sidney explained, holding on for dear life, mentally wondering if it was too late to become religious at the brink of death.

"Then search his office for anything suspicious, and give all of your findings to Ruby. You better not screw around, am I clear?" Regina demanded, voice cool and calm. He nodded out of pure fear.

"And I believe this is our stop. Thanks for taking Swan-Mills interrogation taxi, hopefully you never have to again," Emma cheerfully exclaimed, braking so hard that Sidney knocked his head against the separator between the back and the front seats, head bouncing back with a dull thump.

He groaned, disoriented, and felt himself being shoved out of the vehicle none-too-gently, tumbling onto the sidewalk, followed by his briefcase on top of him. The car rushed away and he was left dazed, sitting in front of his workplace. He was seriously considering buying a car.

* * *

"Interrogation taxi? Laying it on a bit thick aren't you?" Regina said, once they got out of the taxi they had apprehended, a few blocks later.

Emma shrugged, turning up her jacket's collar. "Served to scare the living daylights out of the guy, so I wouldn't worry too much."

Regina rolled her eyes. "This from the woman who swore she didn't do blackmail or other unsavoury acts?"

"You're never gonna let that go, are you?"

"Nope, now come on, _Swan-Mills_ ," Regina chuckled, and Emma let out a long-suffering groan.

"I knew you would bring that up!"

"Well of course! Why does it have to be Swan and Mills? Why not Mills and then Swan?"

"It rolls off the tongue nicer!" They continued playfully arguing about the order of their last names all the way back to the Lair, keeping their voices hushed and sticking to lesser used roads. They froze as they neared the area, and the atmosphere was different. Fancy nondescript cars were patrolling, and the roads were busy with women and guys who really didn't fit in.

"I think they're all packing," Emma whispered, ducking out onto a nearby alleyway. "You don't think...?"

"Gold? I do. Question is how he found out," Regina said, following Emma to the alleyway and glancing around.

"Police scanner? A friend on the force?"

Regina shook her head. If Gold did have a friend on the force, he would've found out a lot sooner about their little scheme. No, this was something else. There was missing puzzle piece.

"Do you think Gold's trying to smoke us out?" Emma wondered out loud.

"Probably. Which means we should be far away from here," Regina said, already walking back out, and in the direction they came from. "Time for plan B."

Emma followed behind her, and they headed back to the subway.

They were headed to James Nolan's house. A nice place outside the city, a large house with a well-manicured front lawn in a gated neighbourhood, fancy enough for him to show his money off. By the time they got there, it was dark out, and they were able to walk inside the complex by using their still active badges, and they sneaked up to the front window, crouching close. They wanted to see who was in there before ringing his doorbell, just to be prepared.

They were lucky James had sheer curtains, otherwise they'd be plum out of luck finding out anything more, or seeing if they could at least talk to him and clear their names. They weren't sure what they expected to find, but what they saw was definitely not it.

"Is that-?" Regina began, aghast.

"Shit," Emma breathed.

Inside, sitting on the couch and very much cozy together, was James and none other than _Zelena_ , kissing passionately.

"Talk about a match made in hell," Emma groaned. "How the hell are we going to clear our names now?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh we've got our bad guys!
> 
> So a few of you were right, at least partially. But they're on the run and they've got both the law and the mafia after them, whatever shall they do... well obviously I know, and you will too soon!
> 
> I will try my best to get an update soon, not 4 months from now.
> 
> Meanwhile, I'll get an update out on Such a Heavenly View and Supergirl!


	12. Red-Handed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I'm way beyond late.
> 
> But I have my reasons, mainly being swamped with a job that turned into a nightmare in 5,000 different ways, plus my personal life not being amazing, so I'm trying to get back into the swing of things and having other things to do besides work and feeling sorry for myself.
> 
> So here we go! The final chapter!
> 
> Not exactly an advertised fact, but this is going to be the final showdown and the conclusion to this story. So buckle in, and off we go!

"How in the world can we expect to do anything when James is working with Zelena?" Emma exclaimed in a hushed whisper as they crouched behind the bushes.

Regina was silent and pensive, so Emma repeated her question.

"I think that is exactly how we're going to get them," Regina finally said. At Emma's apparent confusion, Regina added, "You said it yourself, if Gold knew about us from the get go, he would have killed us long ago. Instead, he found out now. Which means that someone told him, and that certain someone, who I'm betting is Zelena, did so now because it's convenient for her and whatever plan she's got up her sleeve. This means that he doesn't know about Zelena's secret affiliation. And James is clearly not making out with Zelena on the city's dime."

"I still don't see how we fit in," Emma said after a second of processing.

"We're the convenient scapegoat. James brought us in as a way to set events in motion. We'll be offed as part of an operation gone wrong, and leave Gold exposed, opening the way for the power couple in there to snag everything and build their new empire," Regina explained. "It's a good plan, but obviously we're going to stop them."

Emma floundered. "How do you expect us to do that? We're on the run from the law and being hunted down by the mafia, in case you forgot."

"It's easy. We expose James for corruption and his collaboration with Zelena, and we get all of Gold's papers in order to expose his illegal activities."

Emma nodded along. But then she frowned and asked, "How do we get anyone to believe us?"

"We use all three of them."

"Say what?" Emma spluttered. "You want to use the mafia and a corrupt cop, and whatever Zelena is, to clear our names?"

Regina smirked, and held a finger to her lips. "I have a plan."

Gold smirked as a guard opened the door to let his visitor in.

"You know, I knew you ladies were smart, conning me into believing you were legitimately interested buyers. But right now, coming to my home just like this by yourself no less, was a truly dumb move."

Emma shrugged, seeming completely unperturbed by the situation she was in. "Is it a dumb move if I have information to help you?"

"Information?" Gold chuckled. "And what the hell kind of information do you have that would interest me?"

"How about the fact that Zelena is selling your secrets to the cops?"

Gold's face fell and twisted into a grimace. "What? Wait, why would I believe a word that you say? You're on the run, you'd say anything to save your own hide."

"Seriously? Don't tell me you actually believe any of the drivel being spewed about us?" Emma asked, going to sit down on the chair in front of Gold's desk.

Gold cringed at Emma's imprudence. "Again, why should I believe you? You're cops."

Emma let out a bellowing laugh. "Cops? Oh wow, that's rich. Tell me, Gold, if I was a cop, why would I have actual cops chasing me down?"

"My sources indicate you are rogue cops. Further from that, what use would it serve me to know more?" Gold wiped an imaginary speck of dust from his desk.

"Maybe because of the fact that Zelena is doing all of this to topple your empire and rebuild her own version with none other than the chief of Boston PD's detectives, one James Nolan," Emma said, presenting a print-out that she had snagged prior to coming there.

Gold gingerly picked the print up, and his face of disgust deepened as he registered that he was looking at Zelena and James in an amorous embrace.

"I know, the bile is just bursting to come out," Emma commented. "I mean, I think it makes sense. Your empire is at the top of its game, and it's ripe for the picking. And with your son back, what better moment to strike? It's no secret that Neal hates you, all she had to do was spurn him along and get your attention. But like any good con, you need to be looking away from where all the action is, otherwise you'll end up losing everything."

Gold sniffed, crumpling up the paper with the picture. "This all sounds very convincing, and I'd be prepared to believe your tale, but there's still the matter of your loyalties. Are you a cop or not?"

Emma shrugged. "If I was a cop, would I be here to offer you a deal?"

"A deal? That's mighty brave of you to offer. You are aware I always come out on top with a deal, don't you?" Gold grinned predatorily. "What could you possibly have that I can't acquire myself? You're on the run."

"I guess that's a chance you'll have to take. You have to accept the deal before I reveal what the deal is."

"Ooh, we're playing with high stakes aren't we?" Gold giggled. "And here I thought the brains of the operation was Regina, or whatever her real name is."

"Regina is...no longer my partner," Emma stated. "She and I disagreed on our plan of action. She wants to join Zelena and James, the winning team as it were, and leave you to rot."

"You disagree?"

"Of course. A shake-up in the Boston underworld would take months, if not years to finalize. I read up about when you took over. It was a done deal and within days everyone accepted you as the new leader. Now, loyalties will be tested and lines will be drawn. I have no interest in politics. Just the bottom line."

Gold seemed impressed. "A very sound notion to have. But if she is with them, and you're no longer partners, what interest would I have in helping you? As I understood, your venture was a joint one. I have no room for solo endeavors."

"I'm sure we can work something out." Emma flashed a conspiratorial smirk, one that Gold returned.

"Very well, I agree to the terms. What is your deal?"

"You give me full access to your entire business, and I will personally make sure Zelena and James cannot pull you under. I will fortify your empire in a way that not even the best could crack."

Gold let out a hearty laugh. "You are quite easy to underestimate. But I am not so easily swayed. I have people who can help me with that. You are grasping at straws."

Emma leaned back in her chair. "You accepted the deal, if you don't recall. I have stakes here, and I can sweeten the pot, but only if I have your full cooperation."

"I suppose that I will be needing someone to take Zelena's job, and you are quite the cunning business woman." Gold reasoned. Then he asked, "What is the deal sweetener?"

Emma shook her head and then leaned forward, right hand out. "No, first we make it official."

"Usually my contract methods are a bit more concrete, but this is not a usual situation." And so Gold shook on it. "Now, the deal cincher?"

"I can get your son back, and assure he stays," Emma supplied. When Gold looked interested, Emma added, "I may have had a tryst with your son some years back, and he may still have feelings for me. Who knows, we could rekindle, have a child..."

Gold did a double-take. "I could have a grandson?"

Emma figured it was best to not include the fact she already had a son with Neal. Gold didn't need to know that. "Indeed. But that can't happen if I have to be on the run from your goons."

Gold's demeanour shifted completely. "Well then, this changes things."

Regina didn't waste any time using the handy lock-picking kit that Emma leant to her, and inviting herself into James' home. She was always big on dramatic entrances, and as she leaned on the doorframe of the living room, the lovebirds were none the wiser.

"Colour me entirely surprised, mixing business with pleasure like that can be dangerous," Regina stated with a smirk.

As expected, Zelena and James sprung apart at her voice, eyes wide and mouths agape.

"Regina…" James seethed, patting his pants down as if searching for his gun.

Regina cackled. "I'm quite certain what you're feeling in your pants is not your gun."

James' cheeks flushed in anger and embarrassment. Zelena growled. "What the hell do you want?"

"What any smart and sensible person does when they're on the run from both the cops and the mafia: try to broker a deal," Regina said.

James let out a guffaw. "You think we'd make a deal with you? You're at the end of your rope, and it shows. Not even Emma is here, far as I can see; drove her away?"

"We had a disagreement," was all Regina said. "In fact, she is right now talking to Gold and spilling all your delicious secrets and plans to take over his empire."

Zelena let out a huff. "You're bluffing."

Regina shook her head. "What would I have to gain by lying to you? James himself said, I have nothing left. The least I can do is join the winning team."

"Say we believe you," Zelena cautiously began, "what do you have to offer us?"

"My services. You two opened your hand way too early, and your empire is in danger of never being formed. I am already an outlaw in the eyes of the criminal underworld. Let me into the fold and I will see Gold's business tumbles, taking him down too. Bonus for you, you two don't have to get your hands dirty by letting me handle everything."

James crossed his arms. "That sounds like a mighty tempting deal. What do you get out of it?"

"20% profit for the first year, and then I will leave and never come back."

Zelena grinned. "Oh good deal. How can you know we won't betray you?"

Regina shrugged. "I don't. But I suppose the knowledge I have, and my cunning, which James can attest to, is enough to keep me alive and out of your hit list for a while I'd wager."

James and Zelena exchanged a quick glance, and then the latter said, "Welcome to the fold. Now do tell us how your glorious ex wound up wanting to help that good for nothing Scottish fool?"

Emma had quite easily hit the jackpot with this room. The evidence she had in front of her was enough to not only put Gold away, but also plenty of his associates, including people within public office, and fellow cops. Now she just had to figure out how to get all of these documents out of there.

"Are you going to make me stay in that stuffy room with all your records?" she asked as she entered Gold's office. She had spent the entire night poring over the documents, too paranoid to actually sleep.

To make matters worse, Gold had confiscated her burner phone, so she had no way to contact Regina.

"Are you planning on taking a trip with my precious documents?" Gold asked, amused.

"Not exactly, but I love a room with a view," Emma responded with a smirk. "Maybe you can have your little assistant Lacey help?"

"I don't see why not."

While Lacey helped Emma, she took the opportunity to spring the next part of the plan.

"I need you to contact Red and tell her to come here," Emma whispered.

Lacey frowned. "Don't you have her number?"

"Not sure if you haven't been keeping up, but I'm not in the best position to keep a tracking device such as a phone in my person."

"Touche. When should I ask her to meet you?"

"As soon as she can get away." Then Emma added, "I'll also need another favour."

Later in the afternoon, Ruby had shown up.

"Oh thank god you're okay," she breathed as soon as she saw Emma, and went to give her a hug. "I begun to fear the worst when I hadn't heard from you guys."

Emma returned the hug with gusto, and then said, "Sorry about that. It's been a whirlwind, plus we had to get our plan in order."

Ruby looked surprised. "You guys have a plan?"

"I was just wondering that myself dearie," came Gold's voice from the doorway. "And don't tell me you thought I wouldn't have upped security knowing what I do."

Ruby tried to reach for her gun, but froze when two burly men with their own guns appeared, pointing them at Ruby and Emma.

"Ah ah. Not so fast." Gold tutted. "Please put your weapon down and kick it my way, would you?"

Much to her chagrin, Ruby did as Gold ordered.

"Now, you two have a lot of explaining to do." Gold smirked, kicking the gun away. "And I would appreciate the truth."

Emma sighed, hoping she could salvage her cover. "This is my associate, Red, you might have seen her when you came to see our operation. I have a side plan with her to regain control of said operation, but right now, Regina has the keys to the place. I sent Red to scout things out, but we're still a no-go."

"I see." Gold scrunched his nose a bit, like he didn't believe her. "Apprehend them."

The two goons approached Emma and Ruby, and took hold of them by their upper arms. They vainly tried to struggle, but the men were much stronger.

"Do you think I am an idiot? Be honest," Gold inquired with a quirk of his lips. "I have done my research. I know just who you are, Emma Swan. You, Ms. Mills, and Ms. Lucas here."

"Then why pretend otherwise?" Emma asked, jaw slack.

"Curiosity. I like being challenged, and you provided just that. You two are certainly not the first band of cops to want to infiltrate my ranks in order to bring me down. But you are the first group to get this far. I must express my astonishment."

"That's how Zelena knew," Emma gasped.

"No," Gold shook his head. "What that witch is doing with that pasty cop was out of my purview. But worry not, I will make them pay for this."

Ruby scoffed and muttered, "Looks like the stiff can still be taken by surprise."

Gold let out a giggle. "Indeed I can, though I'd caution those kind of snippy remarks. It won't bode well for you."

"Like I have a very bright future ahead of me in this current situation," Ruby deadpan riposted.

"Quite true. Enough monologues from me. I am a busy man, and I don't want to make your deaths agonizing and-" He was interrupted by the doorbell, and he groaned. "What now?"

"Mr. Gold! Some guests for you!" Lacey's voice trailed from the open doorway, the latter none the wiser about what was happening in the room.

"Just my luck," Gold muttered. He turned to his henchmen, and barked, "Keep an eye on them. If they get free, it will be your heads."

A minute or so after he left, the french windows opened, and a contingent of cops showed up, all of them armed, with Regina at the helm.

Emma recognized them all as the ladies that helped to populate the lair, and she sighed in relief. They were safe.

"What the hell is the meaning of this?" one of the henchmen snarled.

"You are trespassing on private property!" the other exclaimed.

Regina, clearly smug, stated, "We're cops, we have every right to be here, especially considering how you're holding the two ladies here."

Ursula pointed her gun at the burliest one, who was holding Emma. "If I were you, I would let them go."

"You are outnumbered," Ruby added, taking note of the many women against the two of them. "I'd do as they say big guy."

Wisely, the two men surrendered, and Regina was quick to make her way to Emma, and assess if her girlfriend was alright. If they didn't have an audience, she would have been quick to bring her in for a kiss. But as it was, they still had to take care of Gold before they could be totally clear.

"He left to take care of some guests," Emma explained, taking an offered gun from the squadron of ladies.

"We know," Regina nodded. "I might have helped to orchestrate it. And good thing too, we were just in time."

Emma scoffed. "We had it under control, right Rubes?"

"Speak for yourself," Ruby responded, strapping on her vest. "I was pissing my pants there. Another second and I would've been a goner."

Emma shrugged at Ruby's theatrics. "Let's get Gold."

"And our favourite couple," Regina added, and exited the room before Emma could ask for more information.

Once they reached the foyer, they found quite the scene. James was pointing a gun with a silencer at Gold's head, and Zelena was comfortably using James' left shoulder as an arm rest. Gold had one hand clutching his right leg, which was sporting a red blotch that clearly came from James' gun, and his other hand was lazily raised, as if he was just uninterested in his current predicament, rather than grimacing through his pain.

On the floor near the door, Lacey laid crumpled in a heap. Ruby hoped she was unconscious, and it mercifully seemed to be the case, noting the lack of blood around her.

"Well, doesn't this make things easy for us," Emma started. "We can just arrest all of you at once."

Gold seethed and uttered, "Under what charges?"

Jerking a finger behind her, Emma said, "Well in your case, I'm sure the documents you so graciously handed to me will create quite a stir. So pick anything: extortion, bribery, murder, the list goes on."

"You'll forgive me if I don't surrender immediately, Ms. Swan. I have another pressing matter at hand," Gold dryly stated, gesturing to the gun by his head with his hand, and his wound with his chin.

"Oh don't worry," Regina was quick to add. "They'll be arrested too."

James let out a guffaw. "I think you might be confused. I am your superior. You have no right to arrest me."

"To the contrary, we have every right," Regina countered. "You see, I went to Spencer with everything I had, and he was very interested in hearing about how you had been conducting business with a well-known criminal's partner, and the conspiracy to murder two detectives really didn't help your case. So I have every right to arrest you. So if I were all of you, I would let my partners here arrest you."

Zelena growled and spat at Regina and Emma. "You conniving little bitches! You ruined everything!"

Emma chuckled. "Yeah, we tend to do that, being cops and all. Shame on you for thinking Regina would betray me like that."

James huffed, and quickly spun to take aim at Regina with his weapon, but Emma was faster, and shot him in his hand, making him drop his weapon, and clutch his now bloody hand. Reluctantly, he raised his shaking hands, sobbing quietly through the pain.

Zelena, after seeing her beloved give up, quietly followed suit. The ladies moved in to arrest the trio, and tend to Lacey, who was coming to.

All in all, it was a very peaceful arrest. Regina had been expecting for things to get ugly, and for someone to wind up shot, but all three criminals were smart enough to know when they had to throw in the towel to avoid making a bigger mess, and let themselves be cuffed.

When Lacey was also arrested, Ruby's face fell, but she quickly assured her she would vouch for her.

Once everyone was being marshaled to the police cars, Emma and Regina finally got a moment to themselves.

"Told you it would work," Regina victoriously stated.

"You did cut it a bit close though," Emma countered.

"Says the woman who said she had everything under control," Regina scoffed. "But you should know by now, you never need to doubt me."

"You know I never did," Emma grinned.

Regina let out a mock gasp. "That is a bold-faced lie! You doubted the entire thing!"

Emma shrugged, plastering a conspiratorial smile on her face. "I plead the fifth."

"You are insufferable," Regina said, smacking her playfully on the arm.

"Yeah, but you love me," Emma quickly riposted, bringing her face closer to Regina's.

Regina hummed, closing the gap until their lips were almost touching, and hummed, "Touche."

They took the opportunity that no one was watching them to share in a sweet kiss together, only breaking apart when Emma's hands began to wander lower than they should have in a public setting.

"Now come on, let's get our lives back," Regina said, offering her hand to Emma, who took it without missing a beat.

Emma felt an immeasurable relief to be able to get back to her normal. Seeing Henry after so much time away made tears prickle at the corner of her eyes.

She was incredibly grateful that that mission was finally over, though she would never regret having taken part in it. It had led her to Regina, and with it, a blossoming relationship which had been steadily growing. They were in talks of moving in together in the not-so-distant future, as soon as they decided whose apartment they would take.

With James' arrest, the detectives department needed a new boss, and Regina was quickly drafted as the best candidate. To no one's surprise, she was fitting in quite nicely in her new role. However, Regina still insisted on being Emma's partner in the field, and would assist her on cases as often as she could.

After a few months, Ruby got upgraded to a detective, and she couldn't be happier to once again be working near her best friend. She was now dating Lacey for real, who had gotten a full pardon after her cooperation in apprehending Gold, as well as her testimony to all the crimes she had witnessed and overheard Gold commit. Plus it helped that she had been vouched by not only Ruby, but Emma and Regina as well.

As expected, Gold's empire had crumbled with no one at the helm. James and Zelena had lost everything, as their plans had been revealed through Gold's papers, as well as Regina's testimony, not to mention the recordings of their conversations. A court date had been set where their case would be determined, though everyone was sure the nefarious duo would be spending a long time in jail.

Gold himself was facing an extensive list of charges like Emma had said, and was already in jail, where he would likely never get out. The insult on top of everything was that due to his shot leg, he now truly had to use a cane, unlike the prop he'd had beforehand.

All in all, it had been the perfect sting, and Emma and Regina's heroic operation had received plenty of accolades. They had received medals and a badge of honour, and the streets of Boston were safe once again.

But not for long.

Neal looked around his father's once-lavish office, well, what was left of it. Everything had been overturned, and many things lay broken and ripped apart.

He seethed, and glanced at the newspaper in his hand detailing his father's arrest. "I will destroy you for what you did to my father, Emma Swan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadaa!
> 
> I left it open-ended in case I ever decided to revisit this universe and its characters.
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed this cop fic, I definitely had a blast writing it!
> 
> Now I have other fics to focus on, starting with Such a Heavenly View, and Flirting with Death!
> 
> Let me know your thoughts!


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